Teeth whitening is a very popular cosmetic treatment of the last decade or two, meaning that it is big business in certain circles. As a result of its popularity, there is an absolute truck load misinformation floating around about the subject, some of which is from scam artists trying to sell ineffective home whitening kits, others are about do-it-yourself methods that can be out right dangerous.
If you are interested in getting your teeth whitened, then it is important that you visit a professional and reputable dentist or purchase a home kit from a licensed pharmacy to keep yourself safe. Even if they do not offer the service themselves, a general dentist practice will be able to advise you on certain matters and recommend a course of action for you to proceed along.
Myth 1: You can use hydrogen peroxide
Starting off with a highly dangerous one here, hydrogen peroxide is hair bleach and there are some corners of the internet that are recommending that you wash some around in your mouth. Now, firstly if you do, for whatever insane reason, choose to try this, make sure you spit the chemicals out and rinse your mouth out thoroughly.
More importantly DO NOT put hydrogen peroxide in your mouth! It is incredibly dangerous if you ingest it, it comes in bottles with health warnings on them. If you ingest hydrogen peroxide it will most likely cause severe damage to you throat and digestive system. Never, ever try to use hydrogen peroxide to whiten your teeth!
Myth 2: You can safely whiten children’s teeth
All teeth whitening kits on the market are designed for, and aimed at, adults. The strength of the chemicals and the methods of applying them are not suitable for use by children and no reputable dentist should recommend otherwise.
There are rare circumstances where children’s teeth can be whitened, but it should only ever be attempted by a professional dentist, not using a home kit. Children’s teeth are considerably more delicate than adult teeth, even if they have had their adult teeth through, so do not attempt to whiten a child’s teeth – you could do long term damage to them.
Myth 3: You can safely make whitening solutions with domestic ingredients
Another one that will have you putting all sorts of random chemicals into your mouth. There are various “guide” online that will list all sorts of household items that you should mix together to form a whitening solution that you then have to stick in your mouth. These ingredients range from baking soda to fruit, furniture polish to bleach, needless to say these are ineffective at best , incredibly dangerous at worst.
The underlying message here is to keep things simple. Buy a professionally sold whitening kit from a reputable drug store, or preferably go and see your dentist and get their advice and services on the subject. Attempting to save some money on dodgy solutions is not worth your health and the medical bill you will undoubtedly receive when you have to go to hospital for poisoning yourself. Stay safe and consult your dentist.
