I have dental bonding that is really picking up stains. I asked my dentist for take home whitening trays to try to get them back to the whiteness they had. I know they can’t get whiter than they were originally made. But, my dentist told me that teeth whitening won’t get them to their color again. I know zoom whitening is stronger than your typical teeth whitening. Would that have more success? My dentist doesn’t have zoom so I don’t think he’d tell me if that would work.

Kelly

Dear Kelly,

While Zoom Whitening is a bit stronger than the take home whitening, they both work on the same principles, so they will only whiten your natural tooth structure. Neither of them will have an impact on your dental bonding. There is a possibility if the stains are all surface stains that your dentist could polish them up a bit. However, if they are internal stains he won’t be able to do anything about those. Dental bonding is made with composite material, so they are not very stain resistant and you should expect to have to replace them every few years.

If you’re looking for something more permanent, you could look into porcelain veneers. They can last a lifetime and are more stain resistant than both dental bonding as well as your natural tooth structure. They can also change anything about your smile, including the shape, size, and color in order to give you a complete smile makeover. However, they are much more expensive than simply replacing your dental bonding.

Whichever you decide on, you’ll want to make certain that you have an expert cosmetic dentist do the work.

This blog is brought to you by Lafayette, LA Dentists Drs. Foreman and Thimmesch.