Teeth Whitening – Springfield, MA
Brighten Your Grin and Boost Your Confidence
One of the first things others notice about you is the quality of your smile, and it’s perfectly natural to want to make a positive impression. Unfortunately, if you have developed stubborn dental stains that you can’t seem to brush away, you might worry about being judged for your appearance.
Our team in Springfield is happy to brighten your grin and boost your confidence with professional-grade in-office teeth whitening treatments. Continue reading to learn more about this popular cosmetic service, and please feel free to contact us to schedule your appointment.
Why Choose Taylor Street Dental for Teeth Whitening?
- Experienced Cosmetic Dentists
- Advanced Technology for Enhanced Accuracy
- In-Office Whitening Procedures for Rapid Results
Who is a Good Candidate for Teeth Whitening?
Potentially, anyone who is dissatisfied with the color off their teeth can benefit from teeth whitening, but that doesn’t mean it’s the best treatment to meet everyone’s unique needs. Before proceeding, you must consult one of our providers to ensure you’re a good candidate.
Once we’ve examined your mouth and addressed any pre-existing concerns, such as cavities or gum disease, we can determine whether this procedure can effectively lighten your grin. For instance, surface stains caused by consuming darkly pigmented foods tend to respond better to topical bleach than deeper intrinsic blemishes in the lower layer of dentin.
How Does Teeth Whitening Work?
Although over-the-counter products tend to be less concentrated and less effective than professional-grade solutions, teeth whiteners are generally intended to function the same way. The gel that’s placed on your enamel undergoes a chemical reaction that breaks down the pigmented particles, reducing their size and concentration. However, store-bought options may not produce consistent coloration due to one-size-fits-all applicators and diluted bleaches, which can also cause sensitivity.
Meanwhile, our team carefully applies ultra-concentrated gel to your enamel, then speeds up the whitening process by applying a special ultraviolet light for more immediate results.
In-Office Teeth Whitening
Our team in Springfield uses Zoom! Teeth whitening solutions that are designed to deliver an optimal outcome while mitigating potential discomfort. We offer in-office procedures that can potentially lift your smile tone by several shades in a single visit. This can be an ideal way to enhance your smile in preparation for an upcoming event, such as a graduation, reunion, or wedding.
If you have a momentous occasion approaching and you want to look your best, let our team know during your consultation, and we’ll do everything we can to help you brighten your grin in time.
Tips for Maintaining Your Brighter Smile
Once you finally achieve the perfect hue, it’s natural to want to do everything you can to preserve the results. You can usually expect your teeth to look lighter for about three to six months, though you can help maintain your smile by:
- Avoiding darkly pigmented foods like coffee, tea, berries, tomatoes, or wine that can stain.
- Eating more dairy products, like yogurt, milk, and cheese, to strengthen your enamel and avoid discoloration.
- Brush and floss twice daily to remove plaque buildup that gives deeply toned particles something to cling to.
- Schedule periodic touch-ups to preserve the ideal shade.
- Visit our team every six months for a routine checkup and cleaning, which allows us to monitor your oral health and polish away more recent blemishes.
Understanding the Cost of Teeth Whitening
Even if you’re eager to lift stubborn dental stains and brighten your smile by several shades, it’s understandable that you might be curious about how much the treatment will cost. At Taylor Street Dental, we’ll be happy to provide you with a proper cost estimate when we see you at our office in Springfield for your consultation, but here’s a brief guide to help you get an idea of what to expect.
Factors That Affect the Cost of Teeth Whitening
Teeth whitening treatments typically have set prices, but there are a few factors that can affect how many sessions you will need to achieve your desired results. A few of these include:
- The severity of your stains and discoloration.
- How your stains and discoloration were caused. Stains can be caused by exposure to discoloring agents, certain medications, age, and other factors, and they can be intrinsic, meaning located beneath the enamel, or extrinsic, meaning located on its surface.
- The need for preliminary procedures such as fillings, root canals, and gum disease therapy before teeth whitening can be performed safely.
Types of Teeth Whitening: What Do They Cost?
There are several types of teeth whitening treatments available. Here’s a quick breakdown of how a few popular options are usually priced.
- At Taylor Street Dental, we offer in-office teeth whitening treatments that can be completed in about an hour. These usually cost between $400 and $800, but multiple treatments may be necessary in severe cases.
- Customized take-home whitening kits usually cost a few hundred dollars.
- Store-bought whitening trays usually cost $100 or less.
- Whitening strips or gels from your local store or pharmacy usually cost $20 to $40 for a two-week supply.
Cheap Teeth Whitening vs. Professional Teeth Whitening
While you may wonder why professional teeth whitening treatments are so popular after considering the numbers listed in the previous section, it’s important to remember that our in-office whitening procedures deliver impressive results that other options can’t match. Many people using store-bought solutions achieve only lackluster results if any at all even after using the products for several months, and some of them even suffer injuries due to poor quality or user error. Our in-office whitening sessions, on the other hand, can brighten a smile by up to eight shades and lift stubborn dental stains in a single one-hour procedure.
Options for Making Teeth Whitening Affordable
Teeth whitening is rarely covered by dental insurance since it doesn’t usually pay for elective cosmetic procedures. However, we offer flexible financing plans from our partners at Cherry, which will allow you to break your bill into small monthly payments that are easy to manage. We’ll be sure to help you understand your payment and financing options when we see you at our Springfield office during your consultation.
Teeth Whitening FAQs
Does teeth whitening hurt?
Many people wanting brighter smiles hesitate to schedule a cosmetic consultation because they’re concerned that professional teeth whitening procedures might hurt. Thankfully, that’s usually not the case! In fact, this popular service is considered non-invasive because it’s incredibly straightforward and there’s no need for needles or numbing.
With that said, it’s possible to develop temporary sensitivity after your appointment because the bleach applied to your enamel expands the microscopic pores located there, allowing sensations, like hot or cold temperatures, to travel more easily to the tender roots inside. Any associated tenderness usually resolves on its own after a few days and can often be safely reduced with over-the-counter medications, such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen.
How is professional teeth whitening different from store-bought products?
Are you wondering whether it’s worth investing in professional teeth whitening when there are cheaper options available at your local store or pharmacy? It’s natural to want to reduce your out-of-pocket expenses, but when it comes to cosmetic dentistry, the quality of a product is often reflected in its price.
Unfortunately, many store-bought options contain diluted bleaches that cause additional sensitivity or produce inconsistent results. Not only that, but you might apply the chemical over hidden cavities or gum disease, which can cause pain. Meanwhile, our team will examine your mouth and treat any pre-existing issues to ensure your teeth are as healthy as they are beautiful. Furthermore, we use ultra-concentrated gels designed to mitigate discomfort and can potentially lift your enamel tone by several shades in a single visit.
Am I a good candidate for teeth whitening?
Seemingly, everyone wishes they had a flawlessly white smile, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that teeth whitening is the best solution to meet everyone’s unique needs. Before proceeding, you must consult one of our providers in Springfield to ensure you’re a good candidate.
For example, extrinsic stains in your enamel caused by exposure to darkly pigmented foods usually respond better to topical treatments than intrinsic blemishes that have seeped into or originated in the lower layer of dentin. Once we identify the type and severity of your discoloration, we can recommend an appropriate cosmetic solution, such as teeth whitening or placing veneers.
How can I help maintain my brighter smile?
Once you finally have the beautifully bright grin you’ve always dreamed of, it’s only natural to want to do everything you can to maintain the outcome. You can help preserve the perfect hue by:
- Implementing an at-home dental hygiene routine. Brushing and flossing twice daily removes plaque and bacteria that give pigmented particles a surface to cling to.
- Scheduling touch-ups. You might require a periodic retreatment to retain the ideal shade.
- Choose foods carefully. Avoiding common culprits that stain, such as coffee, tea, berries, and tomatoes, helps prevent additional discoloration.
- Quit smoking. Vapes, cigarettes, and other tobacco products are known for causing stains and other oral issues, including cancer.
- Attend routine dental visits. Scheduling a checkup and cleaning with our team every six months allows us to monitor your dental condition and polish away more recent stains.