If you are considering teeth whitening at home, you may be wondering if there is really a difference between the take home kits you can get from your dentist and the ones you can buy off the shelf. There is a big difference. Even the over-the-counter (OTC) whitening products that involve using trays and gels, that seem so similar to the kit you get from the dentist, does not deliver the same powerful and consistent results.
Take Home Whitening Kits from Your Dentist
When you get a take home kit from your dentist the whitening gel is a professional grade product with more whitening power than OTC gels.
The trays that come with OTC kits are not custom made for your teeth, and may not provide even coverage and even whitening, and the fit may be so poor that it hurts your gums.
Trays provided by a cosmetic dentist are custom made to fit your teeth so that each tooth gets full and even coverage, with no gaps in the whitening.
Sensitivity
A professional kit comes with desensitizing gel. OTC products can be very uncomfortable or intolerable for people with sensitive teeth.
Support
When you buy an OTC whitening kit, you are on your own. When you use a professional take-home kit provided by the highly trained dentists at The Center for Contemporary Dentistry in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire you have the support of the dentists and our staff. You can call with any questions and concerns, and know that you are getting answers that are relevant to you and your mouth, not just generic information that a rep reads off the screen.
And, should you have a problem that you think needs attention, you can always come into the office to have it checked out.