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Good for you, bad for you: Teeth whitening

By Megan Weltner

Thursday, April 2, 2009

It was early in the morning when I felt the painful sensation surge through my mouth. I had left my bleaching trays on my teeth while I slept the night before and was paying for it now.

Although whitening your teeth can leave you with a seriously sensitive mouth, says Pam Gotschall, certified dental assistant in Prairie Village, it is perfectly safe if you follow the directions.

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Photo by Megan Weltner

Blinding white: Leaving whitening strips on teeth for longer than directed dehydrates the teeth, leaving them sensitive.

“People always think if they leave the trays in longer or the strips on for extra time it will make their teeth even whiter, but there is a point where the bleach stops working and they are only dehydrating your teeth,” Gotschall says. “The dehydration causes the severe pain.”

Americans spent more than $2.3 billion on teeth whitening in 2008, according to a study conducted by the American Dental Association. From whitening strips that you can by at your local grocery store to thousand-dollar whitening procedures, people can’t seem to get enough bleach for their pearly whites. Gotschall says because there is such a demand for these products, the ADA has been doing a lot of research to make sure there are no negative short- or long-term effects.

Verdict: Good for you, if you follow the directions

Comments

Good for you, bad for you: Teeth whitening

"the ADA has been doing a lot of research to make sure there are no negative short- or long-term effects"'

Again, with the equivocating "good for you" and "not bad for you"

Let's pick something that's not bad for you. Watching TV. Is watching TV good for you?

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