Sophie Habboo's dentist explains the safest ways to whiten your teeth at home
If you’ve clicked on this story and made it this far, you’re obviously thinking about whitening your teeth and making your pearly whites gleam. With toothpastes, at home whitening strips, LED kits and dentists offering professional in-house bleaching - it’s a minefield to know what actually will work, what ingredients to avoid, how long should you start preparing before a wedding and what to avoid?
Thankfully we’ve enlisted the help of Dr Krystyna Wilczynski, Cosmetic Dentist at White & Co Battersea Power Station to let us in on a few secrets behind the whiter and brighter smiles that she’s created on celebrities like rugby player Chris Robshaw, Emily English (also known as @EmTheNutritionist) and Made In Chelsea’s Sophie Habboo.
We asked her some burning questions about whitening at home, what ingredients and at-home methods you should avoid, what’s really the best method, do at home kits and why have we suddenly become so obsessed with having whiter teeth?
Dr Krystyna Wilczynski shares with us her top tips, tricks and how to get a whiter smile safelyWhy has at-home teeth whitening become so popular?
There is a lot of social media marketing for home whitening kits, including Instagram, Facebook and influencers. I feel that the beauty/wellbeing/health industry is booming due to the fact that people want to look and feel better. Also, apps such as FaceTune which allow you to smooth skin and whiten teeth can influence and encourage people to have this done. We just need to ensure it is done safely and correctly.
Is it possible to whiten your teeth at home safely? Are the results in clinic always better?
It is safe to whiten your teeth at home, so long as dental trays and gels have been provided by a dentist and not bought off the internet. The trays need to be custom-made by a dentist, by either digitally scanning or taking moulds of the teeth. These are sent to specific dental labs that create them. If people buy these trays off the internet, it can often lead to disasters where they have purchased illegal bleach, which can cause permanent damage to teeth and gums with things like recession.
Kate Middleton swears by £19.99 rosehip oil that helps 'reduce wrinkles & scars'
My recommendation would be the combination of dental chair in-house bleaching and at-home professional tray bleaching, which is the gold standard. The dental in-house bleaching is not sufficient as a stand-alone treatment due to it only bleaching the outside enamel. The home kits will take the bleach further and deeper into the teeth for longer-lasting, even and better bleaching.
What at-home teeth whitening treatment/system do you recommend and why?
I would only recommend those that enhance the whiteness of your teeth such as Nano Whitewash. Their whitening toothpaste provide excellent results with minimum sensitivity.
What do you think about teeth whitening strips?
Whitening Strips are definitely good, particularly if you want a boost just before an event. However, they are not ideal for long standing whitening and you need to be cautious about which ones you purchase and check that they are FDA approved here in the UK.
Are there any teeth whitening ingredients you should avoid?
Do not attempt to whiten your teeth yourself as home with ingredients such as baking soda, which are damaging to the enamel - only opt for professional teeth whitening options and those which are FDA approved.
Do teeth whitening toothpastes work? If so, which one is best?
They work in the way that they remove staining caused by things such as coffee and smoking. This is because they are abrasive and do not contain peroxide to bleach teeth. They contain ingredients such as silica, which scrub the surface of the teeth, working to deeply clean the outside layer. Some whitening toothpastes contain the chemical blue covarine, which adheres to the surface of the teeth and creates an optical illusion that can make teeth appear less yellow.
What about charcoal toothpastes: do these work for whitening?
The charcoal can wear the enamel away, which is the hard-outer coating of your teeth that protects the dentine. Dentine is what the bulk of your tooth is made up of and is naturally yellow in colour. Enamel is naturally white, so if you use a toothpaste that is abrasive and wears the enamel away, it becomes more translucent, causing the yellow dental to show through and eventually making your teeth appear more yellow. Therefore, charcoal toothpastes do not work and actually damage your teeth.
What's the difference between professional vs at home whitening?
The cost of teeth whitening can vary from product to product, but professional in-house teeth whitening is the most expensive option, with the average being £250 to £600 depending on the treatment. This is because it is professionally led with dentists and the difference is the number of active ingredients found in the whitening agents, like 16% of carbamide peroxide, which breaks down to form Hydrogen Peroxide. These ingredients change the colour of surface level and deep stains in enamel, making them whiter. The standard supermarket products can legally only sell products with 0.1% of hydrogen peroxide and therefore, you will not be able to achieve the same impact compared to professional products.
How long should you start whitening before a big day, like your wedding?
Start your whitening process a month prior to your wedding with in-house bleaching, which uses blue UV or LED lights. Then, follow up with two to three weeks of home bleaching with a take home bleach whitening kit.
So how can we keep our teeth white?
Reduce intake of food and drinks that cause staining, such as red wine, coffee, tea, curries and of course, smoking. Be sure to book yourself in for regular hygiene visits and always ensure you brush your teeth twice a day, preferably with an electric toothbrush. You can also rinse your mouth with water within 30 minutes of drinking the likes of red wine, which is better than brushing immediately after consumption as this increases enamel-eroding acid.
Now whilst Dr Krystyna Wilczynski has recommended some great dentist only options, we know that getting an appointment might be tricky, and can cost you an arm and a leg! Thankfully we’ve found some cheaper alternatives that come highly recommended by users online.
Argos shoppers rush to buy Hy-Pro Football Table that's slashed to half price
Teeth Whitening Accelerator Gel
Teeth Whitening Accelerator Gel by Spotlight Oral Care (Spotlight Oral Care)This Teeth Whitening Accelerator Gel contains the active whitening ingredients PAP and Hydrogen Peroxide for instant whitening results. All you need to do is add it to your favourite toothpaste and brush as normal to dissolve tough stains.
Buy now for £29.95 at Spotlight Oral Care
Oral-B 3D White Luxe Glamorous White Toothpaste
Oral-B 3D White Luxe Glamorous White Toothpaste at BootsBuy now for £6 at Boots
Expert Teeth Whitening Kit with Blue Light Activation
Expert Teeth Whitening Kit with Blue Light Activation at BootsThis Boots Expert Teeth Whitening Kit with blue light activation can help whiten your teeth by up to a whopping 10 shades in just a week - and gets to work immediately. Even better, the silicone mouth tray is soft and flexible, giving a super comfortable fit which you will find more gentle on your gums, and reduce the risk of receding or damaging your gums too.
Buy now for £33 at Boots
DrDent Premium Teeth Whitening Strips
DrDent Premium Teeth Whitening Strips at AmazonNow you too can have a gorgeous white smile thanks to these DrDent Premium Teeth Whitening Strips! Yes achieve a whiter, brighter smile in as little as 7 days after just 30-60 minutes of pain-free, at-home treatment, per day with DrDent! It's also a pretty affordable, convenient and pain-free alternative that works. Not to mention nearly 23,000 have rated them over at Amazon.
Buy now for £19.99 at Amazon
MySweetSmile Teeth Whitening Powder
MySweetSmile Teeth Whitening Powder at AmazonHate those stains that usually build up on your teeth - from everyday life like drinking tea, coffee, red wine, or smoking? Well this powerful powder from MySweetSmile! For 4 minutes a day (2 in the AM, and 2 in the PM), rather than using an abrasive whitening method like other powders, MySweetSmile uses Pentasodium Triphosphate, to help oxidise stains without causing any damage to your tooth enamel.
Buy now for £24.99 at Amazon
Colgate Max White Ultimate Radiance Whitening Toothpaste
Colgate Max White Ultimate Radiance Whitening Toothpaste at AmazonLooking for an advanced teeth whitening toothpaste that's powered by a dual colour-correction formula, that works to remove surface stains and below enamel to smartly detect and remove deep stains? Well Colgate have it with this one. Working to remove up to 15 years worth of stains, this whitening toothpaste non-abrasively removes deep stains by safely working below the enamel surface.
Buy now for £10.79 at Amazon
Hismile V34 Colour Corrector Serum
Hismile V34 Colour Corrector Serum at BootsLoved by Kim Kardashian and so many other users, this post-whitening treatment that restores brightness and neutralises yellow tones on the tooth surface. Just add 2 pumps to a soft bristle toothbrush, then gently polish in a circular motion for 30 seconds - then voila!
Buy now for £19 at Boots
Moon Kendall Jenner Teeth Whitening Pen
Moon Kendall Jenner Teeth Whitening Pen at BootsWho doesn’t want teeth like Kendall Jenner? That’s why we're picking up the MOON x Kendall Jenner Teeth Whitening Pen when we're next near a Boots store.
This innovative teeth whitening pen instantly brightens teeth, working on tough stains to reveal a whiter smile over time. The 100% vegan formula has a vanilla mint flavour for lasting freshness, whilst MOON’s Elixir III uses a blend of lavender oil, strawberry fruit extract, and honeysuckle extract to brighten the teeth. Oh and did we mention that it's vegan, cruelty-free and free from SLS/SLES, parabens and artificial flavours too?
Buy now for £20 at Boots
Colgate Max White Ultimate at Home LED Teeth Whitening Kit
Colgate Max White Ultimate at Home LED Teeth Whitening Kit at AmazonIn just 10 minutes a day, experience the science of shining and illuminate your smile with the Colgate Max White Ultimate at home LED teeth whitening kit. Currently reduced at Amazon, this enamel safe teeth whitening kit, developed by dental experts, reverses up to 20 years of stains for dazzling, whiter teeth.
Buy now for £70 (reduced from £100) at Amazon
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
