How Long Does Teeth Whitening Last? Updated

If you want to make your smile beautiful, pearl teeth make your smile bright. Teeth bleaching is an affordable method of dental treatment that removes years of stains and brightens your smile. But, how long does teeth whitening last? Unfortunately, teeth bleaching does not last forever. It is like washing your clothes; they are clean for less time but will get dirty again. Fortunately, teeth bleaching does last longer than clean laundry.

Teeth whitening is a prevalent dental treatment. It is the easiest way to enhance the look of your smile. Unlike other dental treatments, which are time-consuming and costly, whitening teeth is affordable and performed during a single dental appointment.

So when people want to have their teeth professionally whitened, they ask a common question, “how long does teeth whitening last?” the answer will depend on your decision regarding professional whitening teeth treatments. While individual teeth whitening results are among the individual, in-office whitening teeth procedures will last for a year.

What is Teeth Whitening?

Teeth whitening is a painless cosmetic dentistry process performed without any anesthesia. There are different methods used for Teeth Whitening, such as gel-filled trays, Whitening strips, etc. The way begins by placing gel-filled trays that contain a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and bleach into your mouth. 

After inserting the trays, a bright light is shined into your mouth to increase the bleaching process. The gel-filled trays are reduced after about 20 to 30 minutes. In all, this teeth-whitening process lasts about an hour.

How Long Does Teeth Whitening Last?

Unluckily, teeth whitening is not permanent. Your results will depend on your treatment, but teeth whitening commonly lasts from a few months to 3 years. But some factors can affect your results, such as the type of staining, the thickness of enamel on your teeth, drinking colored drinks like coffee, red wine, or sodas, and Smoking.

Remember, you can also maintain your brighter smile by drinking a lot of water, having good oral hygiene by brushing your teeth twice a day, and flossing daily. You always want to keep your teeth white and bright all year long, but you must follow a teeth whitening schedule that meets your particular needs and situation. Before we discuss how these factors can affect how long your teeth bleaching results will last, it is essential to understand how teeth bleaching works.

When the whitener is applied to the surface of your teeth and left to sit, it absorbs into your teeth’ enamel and dentin layers during this duration. After the whitener is rinsed off the teeth, it will continue to clean stains for 24 hours after its application.

At-home whitening elements such as strips and gels and chairside bleaching are ways people brighten their teeth and decrease surface stains. Getting a brighter, healthy-looking smile is a beautiful thing for many people. Everyone has a natural level of brightness in their teeth. If you want your teeth to look as white as paper, the results look artificial.

What Causes Teeth Discoloration?

When our permanent teeth come in childhood, they are usually reasonably white. However, they are not as bright as the pearly whites. Brush your teeth twice a day, and avoiding these staining foods, will help keep your teeth whitening for as long as possible. As you age, your teeth become discolored.

The foods you eat, such as coffee, tea, soda, apples, and potatoes, can cause stains. Tobacco, Smoking, and chewing tobacco can also discolor your teeth. If you do not brush or floss properly, your teeth can discolor. Professional cleanings remove plaque and tartar, which discolor your teeth. Certain mouth rinses can discolor your teeth. Diseases that damage your teeth’ enamel can cause spotting and staining. Trauma can also discolor the teeth of children and adults. Some teeth stains are permanent.

Suppose you use tobacco or drink regularly; stains set in, especially if you have poor dental hygiene. Discolorations that are born by tartar typically require dental treatment for removal. After 24 hours, the whitener is safely dissolved by the body and has no effect. Hence, it can only remove existing stains, not new stains. Things like coffee, tea, wine, colored condiments, beets, and pasta sauce, to name a few, all have colored molecules that are socked by the teeth. After some time result will show in the teeth discolouring.

 How Long Does It Take to Whiten Teeth?

It all depends on your method.

Whitening toothpaste

If you use a whitening toothpaste twice daily, it takes 2 to 6 weeks for results. Some users say these results can last up to 3 or 4 months. you can use Whitening Toothpaste every day a week. They contain elements that polish and whiten teeth, such as hydrogen peroxide, carbamide peroxide, and mild abrasives.

Toothpaste that only has abrasives tackles surface stains and can not change the interior color of teeth. You can have long-lasting effects if you continue to use whitening toothpaste. But some people are sensitive to these and find that their teeth become uncomfortable for a long duration.

Whitening strips

Whitening strips are used in the USA and often in the UK for treatments needed before seeing results. Some strips give superior results, which can last up to 6 months. Whitening strips are the most effective over-the-counter treatments for whitening teeth at home. Teeth-whitening strips are common and considered better for their result in the US.

In the Whitening strips, use peroxide to bleach teeth and remove stains. But used incorrectly would cause uncomfortable or harm to teeth. But used correctly, high-quality brands of whitening strips will remove both extrinsic and mild intrinsic stains.

Whitening pens

Whitening pens take two days or a week. They offer you minimal results that are not long-lasting. This Whitening pen is a small plastic tube; the whitening gel is transportable and used for spot-stain removal. You can easily wash away the gel, so you can not eat, drink, or rinse your teeth for about an hour after using it.

Whitening mouthwashes

These Whitening mouthwashes take three months before you see any effect. It meant usually contains hydrogen peroxide. You can use a whitening mouthwash daily to help remove surface staining. They can be most effective in increasing the effectiveness of other treatments, such as in-office whitening or whitening strips. When used alone, its effects are not long-lasting.

Chairside bleaching

If you have good oral hygiene, a chairside and in-office method should offer long-lasting results for 1 to 3 years. This process is done in your dentist’s office. This process uses a potent bleaching agent, such as highly concentrated hydrogen peroxide or carbamide peroxide. Heat may also be used to accelerate the bleaching agent further. For this treatment, only one visit is required.

Side effects of teeth whitening

The active ingredient hydrogen peroxide in teeth whiteners can cause sensitivity to occur in teeth and gums. But it is typically not long-lasting. Many complain that long-term use of any whitener with peroxide is uncomfortable for their teeth or gum. There are also some serious side effects, including.

Gum burns: It is caused by at-home gel tray use and chairside whitening. To avoid the gums cover entirely for treatment use custom-fitted trays. Gum burns and irritations are usually mild and temporary if you do not use them correctly.

Gum whitening: The bleacher puts the side effect of gums whitening, losing their color for a short period.

Stomach ache or distress: If, in any case, you swallow a whitening product, it will affect your throat or stomach. You feel a burning sensation in your throat and a mild stomach ache.

Teeth sensitivity: The use of more teeth whitening makes your teeth more sensitive. You will feel this on your first or second treatment. In such cases, the dentist will recommend treating sensitivity with potassium nitrate, and sodium fluoride gel contains products.

Gum Irritated: You will also feel gingival irritation. This can happen when the whitening product contacts your gums. This side effect goes away after your treatments.

Damage to teeth enamel: Surface grooves on teeth and thinning enamel can occur from any whitener with robust bleaching solutions.

Dental hygiene points

Since you can be safe from stains by controlled and regular brushing and flossing, dental cleanings every six months will remove excess plaque and make it easier to keep your teeth clean and stop staining. However, the lifespan of your teeth will inevitably be affected by what you eat and how you take care of them.

Keeping teeth clean and flossed will not only help to stop cavities and gingivitis but also help you to keep your teeth whitest. Brush at least two times a day, especially after meals. Brushing after a meal will also be helpful because if you eat or drink things that stain teeth, it is better to wait 30 minutes.

Less use of sugar, Chew sugar-free gum and rinse with water after eating. So, as a result, your eating, drinking, and oral hygiene habits can impact how long teeth whitening lasts. Rinsing your mouth and brushing your teeth after eating or drinking can keep discoloring and staining, settling into the surface of your teeth.