Keeping Your Teeth Whiter Longer

One of the 'hidden dangers' in having your teeth whitened is that, no matter what method you use, your teeth are actually more susceptible to stains for a few days after they've been whitened. The reason why is simple and unavoidable.

Normally, your teeth are fairly smooth on the vertical surfaces, even on the molecular level -- but (as we discussed last week), almost every whitening method essentially amounts to a chemical attack on your stains, and those attacks can't help but cause microscopic levels of damage to your enamel as well. Now, tooth enamel is stubborn stuff, and it'll replenish itself quite quickly. Until it has, however, those extra-rough, freshly-whitened surfaces will accept new stains more easily than your church accepts offerings.

That means that for a few days after you get whitened -- no matter what the method, but with Zoom! this is especially true -- you'll want to avoid staining activities. That includes smoking, eating brightly colored foods like tomatoes, curry, and even chicken noodle soup (it has turmeric in it just like curry!) It also means avoiding coffee, tea, colas, and similar darkly-colored drinks especially, because drinks uniformly coat every surface of a tooth as they wash over it, virtually guaranteeing a loss of whiteness.

But what about the longer term? What about weeks after your whitening? Well, one of the big benefits of Zoom! over its competition is that Zoom! lasts for quite some time if properly maintained. Drs. Johnson and Risbrudt will give any patient who comes in for a Zoom! treatment their own personalized post-Zoom! stay-white regimen, usually consisting of a combination of at-home whitening kits, a daily routine of tooth-cleaning exercises, and sometimes even something unique like a new toothbrush that will help to keep those pearlies pearly.

If you follow the regimen and you avoid the obviously staining activities and foods when possible, you can expect your smile to stay bright and happy for about a year -- and even if you don't, six months isn't unreasonable with Zoom! That's why we at the office are proud to offer Zoom! whitening.