Most people wouldn’t function without a couple cups of strong coffee in the morning. And what’s relaxation after a hard day at work without a glass of wine with dinner? Unfortunately, these regular pleasures in life can leave your teeth stained and dull. So can healthy foods such as berries, juices, even spaghetti sauce!
Fortunately, the Refresh Whitening Spa at EMA Dental can brighten your smile for all the world to see. This is the second anniversary of the opening of the Refresh Whitening Spa and we want to make sure all of our patients know about their whitening options.
In-office vs. at-home whitening
The real difference between in-office and home whitening is the strength of the agents used to whiten your teeth. Because there isn’t any supervision and the potential for overuse exists, home gels have far lower concentrations of the bleaching agents. This, of course, requires more applications over a longer period of time than in-office whitening.
Both tooth-whitening options use peroxide-based bleaching agents. The gel we send you home with contains from 3% to 20% carbamide or hydrogen peroxide. Our in-office concentrations are from 15% to 43%, depending on the solution and on the amount of your staining. The difference between in-office and at-home whitening really comes down to how long the agent stays on your teeth.
In office
Whitening at our Refresh Whitening Spa can give you brighter teeth faster. Not only is the concentration of the bleaching solution stronger at the Spa, but we also use activators to intensify the whitening process. Since we are applying a stronger solution, we monitor your progress carefully during your in-office whitening.
At the Refresh Whitening Spa, we can brighten your teeth from three to eight shades. This depends on the causes of your staining and other factors.
At home
For our patients who opt for home whitening, we first make custom trays based upon impressions taken of your teeth. These trays hold the whitening gel that we give you to use at home. How long we instruct you to keep the trays with the peroxide gel on your teeth varies, again depending on the causes of staining and on your teeth.
Tired of your dingy, stained teeth? Call us at EMA at either our Longmeadow or Northhampton offices and let’s talk tooth whitening.