Essential Oils for Teeth Whitening
I’ve been looking for a natural way to whiten my teeth. I don’t like the idea of using chemicals. I keep reading you can use lemons or lemon essential oils to whiten them. Have you seen this work with your patients? I use lemon essential oils in my cleaning regimen but I’d never thought of using it on my teeth.
Caroline
Dear Caroline,
You will find these types of things on lots of natural websites. While you can brighten your teeth with lemons, I wouldn’t recommend it. Think about the fact that you use the lemons to clean around your house. This is because of the citric acid.
Citrus is used in most cleaners, even oven cleaners. The reason for that is it not only kills bacteria, it’s corrosive and eats away at the mess. It will do that to the enamel on your teeth.
The erosion of your enamel not only leaves you susceptible to decay, it also allows them to pick up stains more easily.
The Safe Way to Do Teeth Whitening
I know you’re worried about chemicals, but even the lemons are made of chemicals. The peroxide used in the teeth whitening gel is proven safe for patients. It’s also perfectly safe for your tooth enamel.
There are two types of professional teeth whitening options available for you:
- At-Home Teeth Whitening: This is done with custom fitted trays and whitening gel which your dentist will provide for you. This biggest benefit to this type is you can control the level of whitening you achieve. Once you get your teeth the whiteness you want, you just stop wearing the trays.
- In-Office Teeth Whitening. This is often called Zoom Whitening because that is the brand most dentists use. The benefit to this option is you get your teeth completely white in just one appointment.
This blog is brought to you by Naperville Dentist Dr. David Newkirk.