teeth Archives - Sarah Wilmer DDS

Your smile is the first thing people notice about you and it makes a lasting first impression. Studies show that your smile has the biggest impact on the success of your personal and business relationships, more than any other part of your appearance. An attractive smile makes you feel more confident. The more attractive your smile, the more you are noticed, liked and remembered. A confident smile will get you that long-lasting relationship or that promotion that everyone in the office was gunning for. Your teeth and your smile are a reflection of how you feel about yourself and how you take care of yourself.

One of the fastest ways to make a drastic change in a smile that you are unhappy with is to whiten your teeth. In our office, we hear stories about the antibiotics our patients had as an infant that discolored their teeth and of the kids who would make fun of them in school. Many of our patients have been told there was nothing that could be done for such a deep intrinsic stain. So when we are asked, “will teeth whitening work for me?” The answer is YES! Here’s what you need to know about teeth whitening.

Advantages of Professional Teeth Whitening

Fastest Results

DIY whitening kits can slowly remove a top layer of stain, however, they don’t work for many people — especially those with deep tooth discoloration. Following professional teeth whitening at Dr. Wilmer’s office, you’ll notice an immediate and drastic change. Patients often tell us they have tried every DIY kit out there over the years and never noticed much of a change until they whitened their teeth in our office.

The Safest Form of Bleaching

Dentists are trained to whiten teeth properly by creating custom-fitted trays to keep the whitening agent in contact with the teeth and away from the gums and by using products that are safe for your teeth. Some DIY whitening products that are advertised as ‘tooth-whitening’ contain only abrasives that may remove tea, coffee, and tobacco stains, but do not actually “whiten” your teeth, and can actually cause harm by embedding the abrasives into the gum tissue. Other DIY products have a diluted bleaching solution and are mostly ineffective, while others contain chlorine dioxide, which can destroy tooth enamel (the protective outer surface of the tooth).

Gum & Tooth Sensitivity are More Controllable

One of the side effects of DIY teeth whitening is sensitivity. Our KöR whitening system produces little to no sensitivity for a few reasons. Our custom-fit tray prevents the whitening gel from contacting the gum tissue. We do not use a UV light or laser which causes a great amount of sensitivity and, contrary to popular belief, is actually ineffective at whitening the teeth. We use a buffering agent, a desensitizing agent, and revolutionary technology to stabilize the product prior to use. Hence, we have found our KöR Whitening system to be the gentlest and most effective whitening system available!

Kills Periodontal Bacteria

A CDC study showed that 47% of adults just 30 years and older have some form of periodontal disease. The number jumps drastically as age increases: 70% of adults 65 years and older have periodontal disease. Professionally whitening your teeth restores your gum and teeth’s youthful ability to absorb oxygen. The oxygen makes it difficult (if not impossible) for anaerobic bacteria (periodontal bacteria) to survive. It also breaks through the slime barrier of biofilm (plaque) to destroy the bacteria’s cell walls. We recommend that all of our patients with controlled periodontal disease stay on a whitening maintenance schedule to reduce the risk of relapse.

Types of Stains Best to Get Removed Professionally

It is best to have most stains removed professionally (would you trust the $29.99 special you saw on TV to remove that chocolate stain from your wedding dress?). Your teeth are too important to risk harming with ineffective and unsafe products.

Aging

As you age your teeth naturally darken in color. They also begin losing some of their integrity, which adds to the potential for damage with DIY whitening kits. Professional whitening agents help reduce signs of aging in your teeth while protecting them from further breakdown.

Consumption of Certain Foods

Coffee, red meat, carbonated beverages, turmeric, red wine, tea, and chocolate are all delicious but come at a price – they drastically impact tooth color. Fortunately, professional whitening performed by Dr. Wilmer can remove these stains. And with your easy home maintenance, these staining foods will have no effect on the long-term brilliant color of your teeth so you can continue to enjoy the foods you love.

Tobacco Use

For smokers, the stains on your teeth tell a tale about the number of years you’ve been using tobacco. Professional whitening can wash this proof away and hopefully encourage you to halt this bad habit.

Tetracycline Stain

Some medications, such as tetracycline, can cause significant discoloration to your teeth. Prior to KöR Whitening, improving the appearance of these teeth was virtually impossible, short of putting veneers or crowns on all of them. Our whitening system is the ONLY system that has proven to improve this appearance, giving us miraculous results over and over again.

Why Smiling is Important

Aside from the obvious (you are happy!), there are many reasons smiling is important.

Longevity

Studies show that those who smile and laugh are more likely to live a long and healthy life. Smiling causes you to relax, thereby boosting your immune system, lowering your blood pressure and heart rate, and acting as a natural pain reliever! Whiter teeth will boost your confidence in your smile and you will be more likely to show it off, increasing your chance of living a longer and healthier life!

Social Life

Stained teeth can be embarrassing, causing some people to avoid social gatherings and even avoid dating. It can also turn off others around you who assume the color of your teeth is a result of your lack of a good oral hygiene routine. A healthy bright smile will encourage you to be more social and engage in all the events you don’t want to miss.

Achieving Financial Goals

Having a bright white smile will make you feel more confident in yourself and in your abilities. It influences the way you present yourself at work and in financial interactions. Employers are searching for that self-confident person who cares about themself and their work. Gorgeous, whiter teeth will drastically increase your chances of success and wealth!

Get Your Teeth Whitened By an Experienced Dentist in Richmond, VA

Interested in learning more about teeth whitening and the way it can improve your life? Go ahead – make that drastic positive change you’ve been waiting for in your social life, love life, and career. Contact Dr. Wilmer today, and let us help you create not only a beautiful smile but also a healthy one!

Book an appointment online to get started with the Cosmetic and Laser Dental Spa of Richmond.

Learn More About Our Teeth Whitening Services

Common Question About Dental Hygiene and Overall Health

“Brushing my teeth can really make me healthier? How can my teeth affect my body?”

Gum disease is something that affects at least 75% of the general population, but what is gum disease? Most people assume that if they had gum disease it would hurt, but in reality, it’s considered a silent and deadly disease. People often ignore the early signs and symptoms, including bleeding every time you brush, bad breath that won’t go away, red swollen gums, loose teeth, pus between the gums and teeth, and even sores in the mouth. Many of you are probably thinking, “I would notice that!” Sometimes it is subtle… until it’s not, and we have to talk about treatment to stabilize your mouth. What’s more concerning is where else that bacteria can go.

The bacteria that causes gum disease can travel through the bloodstream throughout your body and affect other organs and functions. Blood pumps throughout your entire body and your heart is the engine that runs the car. Your heart is one of the most crucial organs, as it allows oxygen and blood to travel throughout the body and keep you running. The inflammation in the gums in the mouth influences inflammation in the heart and plaque build-up in the heart, which can lead to cardiovascular disease or even a stroke. The best way to avoid complications from gum disease is to treat it and then maintain a stable mouth, in addition to seeing your physician regularly for blood work and dental hygiene check-ups.

Diabetes is something that can also link directly to mouth health and oral bacteria. One of the common issues patients with diabetes have is the inability to heal quickly and well. Therefore, people with diabetes are more likely to develop infections, such as gum disease. Gum disease is considered a complication of diabetes (especially uncontrolled diabetes) and diabetes can be difficult to control when gum disease and infection are present, putting patients at an increased risk for diabetic complications.

There’s no bones about it! Osteoporosis can be linked to oral health too! All jokes aside, we examine the bones in your jaw and how they influence your ability to keep your teeth. Over time osteoporosis can affect the density of the bone in your body, including your jaw bones. If the density of the jaw bones decreases enough, you can end up losing teeth.

So who can gum disease really effect?

Virtually, everyone. If it seems like I have already given you enough incentive to take care of your mouth, take a deep breath, because I’m not done yet!

Men with gum disease are more likely than women to develop gum disease AND certain types of cancers. They are 49% more likely to develop kidney cancer, 54% more likely to develop pancreatic cancer, and 30% more likely to develop blood cancers than men without gum disease. Gum disease in men can also affect prostate health and cause impotence.

Women, you’re not off the hook either. Gum disease can occur with hormonal changes during puberty, menstruation, pregnancy, menopause, and after menopause, putting women at a higher risk for breast cancer, heart disease (the leading cause for death in women in the U.S.), diabetes, pregnancy complications, and osteoporosis. Women with gum disease have a 3-5 times greater chance of pre-term birth, which often means a low birth weight for the baby. Pregnant women also have a higher risk for cavities, gum disease development, and even development of pregnancy tumors (which are not cancerous). Babies are perfect and wonderful and worth every second of everything we go through to get them… but they sure do a number on the body!

The saying “you are what you eat,” applies to your mouth as much as the rest of your body. The food and drink you consume directly affect the mouth and, more specifically, the teeth. Eating disorders can significantly affect your oral health. Often times when we do our exams, we see early signs of eating disorders or severe acid reflux wearing away the tooth structure. Bulimia is a condition where someone eats and then vomits up the food. This results in acid from the stomach sitting on the teeth and wearing off the enamel, the hard structure that protects teeth from significant wear and cavities. Anorexia, where someone eats very little, is also destructive. It can deprive the teeth and gums of nutrients they need to stay strong. Our goal as dentists and hygienists is to help guide you on a path to treat these diseases, help prevent the long-term damage, and to repair some of the physical damage that may have already occurred.

Oh yes, there’s more. In addition, people who have gum disease and a history of lung problems can actually aspirate oral bacteria into their lungs and cause infections like pneumonia! There are also links between oral health and Alzheimer’s, dementia, and HIV. Early signs of HIV often manifest in the mouth first, which is one reason why oral cancer screenings are so important. An increase in gum disease bacteria can potentially increase the risk for development of cognitive impairments associated with dementia and Alzheimer’s.

As you can see, there are so many reasons that dental hygiene is important. So now you know – brushing your teeth CAN really make you healthier, because dental health and general health are not separate entities. They have a symbiotic relationship. We don’t treat just your teeth. We treat you as a whole person.

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Will Teeth Whitening Work for Me?