Category Archives: Zoom Whitening

Zoom Whitening

Can Teeth Be Bleached to Match Something Specific?

I want to get my teeth very white. In fact, I have a white sweater I love that I want them to match. Is that possible or am I asking too much?

Carol

Dear Carol,

Zoom Whitening

What an interesting question. I can tell you that we haven’t found an upper bound to how white teeth can get. So, it is possible. That being said, the results of teeth whitening can be a bit unpredictable. Zoom Whitening can get them really white fast, but there is not a definitive ending color result.

My suggestion if you have a very specific color you want, would be to go with porcelain veneers. These are custom designed and the color you want can be made to order.

You do need to go to an office that employs an expert cosmetic dentist, though. We have an AACD accredited dentist who comes to our office. Smile makeovers are his art form of choice.

Whoever you end up with, make sure they use a temporary try-in paste so you can see the veneers in place and determine whether you like them or not. If you’re not thrilled, they should be sent back to the lab to make the changes you request.

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

Zoom Whitening

Mysterious Brown Stains

Close to a year ago I started getting these mysterious brown stains on my teeth. My dentist could not figure out what was causing them. I finally went to see a natural dentist who diagnosed them as fluoride stains. I couldn’t imagine how I could be getting fluoride stains at this age, but then I read the tea I drink is fluorinated, so that must be it. Can you recommend a dentist who can do dental bonding to cover these, please? I am 60 years old and am suddenly embarrassed to smile.

Lynette

Dear Lynette,

I am puzzled at your dentist’s inability to diagnose this, as well as surprised at the natural dentist’s diagnosis. Let’s start with the natural dentist. Fluorosis stains are caused by ingesting too much fluoride while your teeth are still forming. There is no way to get fluorosis stains as an adult. A lot of natural dentists are against fluoride, which may be why he or she said that but it shows a fundamental misunderstanding about both dentistry and fluoride.

Now that we have crossed off the fluoride cause, what is it actually? At your age, there are two types of brown stains you can be getting. The first is external. These should be able to be polished off by your dentist rather easily. I would also recommend using Supersmile toothpaste. It is very good at removing external stains. Yet, unlike other whitening toothpastes, it does not cause damage to your enamel.

The second type of stain is internal. Our teeth absorb pigments from food and drink. You mentioned you drink tea. This beverage, along with coffee, is well known for its staining pigments, so that would be the top suspect in my detective notebook.

The solution to these internal stains is bleaching, not bonding. If you want to get rid of them fast, I recommend Zoom Whitening over take-home trays.

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

Zoom Whitening

Zoom for White Spots

I have had white spots on my two front teeth since childhood. I would like to have a more evenly colored smile. My dentist suggested Lumineers but that is very expensive. I was thinking something closer to Zoom whitening or something. Would that work?

Ada

Dear Ada,

Can Zoom Whitening fix white spots?

I am very glad you wrote. What your dentist suggested is a bit of an overtreatment, unless you were looking for a complete smile makeover. Even then, Lumineers would not be my first choice in the brand of porcelain veneers to use. They’re often marketed to inexperienced cosmetic dentists. If you didn’t suggest a desire for a smile makeover, I worry that your dentist may have been using you for practice.

That being said, while Zoom whitening is a very effective means of whitening your teeth, it will not be the solution you are looking for in this situation. Any type of teeth whitening will whiten all the tooth structure evenly. That means as your teeth get whiter, so will the white spots. This is probably not the look you were going for.

The simplest solution would be to see an expert cosmetic dentist who can do microabrasion and then dental bonding. Or, if you do desire to get a complete smile makeover, you could see that expert cosmetic dentist, but for porcelain veneers instead.

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

Zoom Whitening

Solution for White Spots

I had braces in my mid-twenties. Yes, that is late, but my parents were quite poor and I needed to wait until I had the money to do it myself. After they were off, I noticed these white spots on my two front teeth. I asked my dentist if there was anything we could do about that and her response was, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” While that might be fine for her to say, they aren’t her teeth. I just spent a small fortune getting my teeth straight, I would like to be proud of them when I smile and not have people staring at my white spots. So, do you think something strong like Zoom Whitening would help? I’d have to go to a different dentist for that because my dentist doesn’t offer teeth whitening, but I’d really like to fix their appearance.

Kelly

Dear Kelly,

Patient under a Zoom Whitening light.

I’m glad you wrote. It sounds like your dentist has what we call an engineering mindset. They got into dentistry because they like to fix things. As a result, they are not as interested in the cosmetic side of things.

I am glad to hear you are willing to go to another dentist to get this fixed because that is what it will require. Unfortunately, Zoom Whitening will not be the solution though. No matter what type of teeth whitening you use, it will whiten your teeth evenly. That means the white spots will get whiter along with the rest of your tooth structure.

You have two possible solutions here. Both of them will require that you see an expert cosmetic dentist. This is important because you want a beautiful result. Check out their smile galleries to see if you like their results.

Your first option is to have dental bonding done. Whatever dentist you go to will need to carefully remove the white spots (which are actually areas of decalcification) and then place composite dental bonding on top.

If your spots are very large, I suggest you have two porcelain veneers placed on your front teeth instead of the bonding. Especially for large areas, this will give a more aesthetic, longer-lasting result.

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

Zoom Whitening

Zoom Whitening & White Spots

When my daughter’s braces were finally removed, she ended up with white spots on her teeth. Her orthodontist said her dentist could help us with that. The dentist recommended Zoom Whitening to even the teeth up, but for some reason, they now look worse than ever instead. Did something go wrong? Where do we go from here?

Amanda

Dear Amanda,

Zoom Whitening Logo

While Zoom Whitening is an amazing and powerful teeth whitening system, your dentist doesn’t understand teeth whitening principles. When your teeth are whitened, they whiten evenly. That means the white spots they had will still be different from the remainder of her teeth. The difference between Zoom and take-home whitening systems is that Zoom is faster, whitening her teeth in just one appointment, rather than over several weeks.

When there are white spots after braces, it is generally a sign of decalcification. It’s difficult to brush efficiently with all those metal wires and brackets on her teeth. That’s one reason we often recommend Invisalign for teens and adults. Because these use aligners, you can simply remove them to brush and floss and then put them back on.

As for the decalcification, you do want to address that before it turns into actual decay. There is a product on the market called Tooth Mousse which is specifically designed to recalcify teeth.

Another option is to have the decalcified spots gently removed and then have composite bonding placed on top to match the remainder of the tooth.

One caveat here. Your current dentist likely isn’t qualified to do the dental bonding. Teeth whitening principles are quite basic and she missed the boat with that. Bonding is more advanced and takes some post-doctoral cosmetic dentistry training.

Best of luck to you and your daughter!

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