Why Teeth Hurt After Whitening Strips
If you've ever used teeth whitening strips, there's no question that you have noticed it: The process is done, your teeth are (hopefully) whiter and OUCH. Your teeth and gums are killing you.
Why is this the case?
How Teeth Whitening Strips Work
In order to properly understand why this is a problem for you and your teeth, you should get a better understanding of just how whitening strips work. The way in which direct whitening strips work actually sounds a little frightening.
Whitening strips contain a chemical agent designed to whiten things in appearance, usually bleach, chlorine dioxide or peroxide. Those chemicals then react to the enamel on your teeth to whiten their appearance. This is obviously a very similar process to bleaching your white laundry to make them whiter.
Why This Causes Pain
Generally speaking, whitening your teeth is safe, though if the whitening strips contain certain chemicals (such as chlorine dioxide), it is possible to damage the enamel of your teeth in the long run. Furthermore, using the strips for a longer time then recommended may cause enamel damage and cause you additional pain and discomfort.
This is the exact reason why your teeth and gums may be irritated or hurt after using teeth whitening strips. The chemicals which whiten your teeth may do so by damaging or removing the outer layer of tooth enamel. Furthermore, the chemicals involved in the process have been known to separately irritate or inflame your gums. This pain can occur regardless of whether or not your teeth or outer enamel are damaged by the whitening process.
Unfortunately, this isn't the only reason you may have been in pain after using these strips. The removal of your outer enamel does more than just cause pain to your teeth, as your outer enamel is associated with dulling the pain that food, drinks and other irritations can cause. As such, when a whitening strip removes your outer enamel, it may make your teeth more sensitive to these irritants, causing you additional pain.
How To Whiten Your Teeth and Avoid This Pain
Fortunately, modern science has evolved to the point that use of whitening strips is no longer necessary in order to get your teeth whitened. The brand new Ghost White system is capable of achieving an even whiter look. Best of all, this is all done with LED lights, ensuring that your teeth are not sensitive or damaged after treatment. If this is something you are interested in, make sure to check out our website.