The Dangers Of Over Whitening Your Teeth
It seems like having whiter teeth is a popular desire today, and there are many ways people can achieve this. If you want to have whiter teeth, you can use at-home products or get professional services, but you should realize that there are dangers to over whitening your teeth.
What are the dangers?
If you go through professional tooth whitening services each year, this could be considered a normal part of good dental hygiene and care, but if you start whitening your teeth daily, weekly, or even monthly, you might develop problems.
One of the biggest dangers of whitening products is that they are capable of removing the layer of enamel on your teeth. Enamel is found in the outer layer of teeth and is there to protect the teeth. If you begin whitening your teeth too often, your teeth may begin to weaken because of the lack of enamel they have.
When enamel wears off, teeth become softer and more prone to developing decay on them. While your goal with whitening was to simply have whiter teeth, you could end up with sensitive teeth, cavities, receding gums, and a loss of teeth.
How do you know if you've gone too far?
Whitening your teeth is not a bad thing if you do it as needed and recommended by your dentist. In fact, you should always talk to your dentist before performing any type of whitening procedure. Your dentist will be able to tell you if a whitening procedure will be helpful to you, but he or she will also be able to give you warnings.
While it can be hard to know when you have taken this too far, here are some questions to ask yourself about it:
- Are you lying to the dentist about the frequency of using tooth-whitening products?
- Are you visiting several dentists to have professional treatments?
- Are you using products almost every day to help you teeth become whiter?
- Are your teeth sore?
If you answered yes to these questions, there is a chance that you might have a condition known as bleachorexia. This term is used to refer to people that have an obsession with whitening their teeth, and in many cases, these individuals are creating huge problems with their teeth from these efforts.
If you are not sure if teeth-whitening services are right for you, talk to your dentist. He or she will help you develop a plan that is safe and effective for making your teeth whiter.
For more information, contact Pittsburgh Dental Spa or a similar location.
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