If you have taken tooth bonding treatment and your bonded tooth is now stained, you may want to know if you could whiten it. People want white teeth to have a bright smile. They use whitening toothpaste, whitening strips, bleaching powders, or even a laser whitening system. But when it comes to whitening a bonded tooth, the options are limited and non-existent.
No, you can’t whiten your bonded tooth with a whitening formula. The shade of the bonding agent is decided before the bonding treatment. The decision depends on what the patient wants and the dentist recommends after examining the patient’s mouth. The shade has to match the neighboring teeth so that the bonding looks natural.
What causes a bonded tooth to be discolored?
It is expected that the shade of the bonded tooth will retain its color through the lifespan of the bonding. But that happens rarely. A bonded tooth may be discolored for a variety of reasons, including the following:
- Drinking tea or coffee
- Drinking pigmented beverages
- Smoking or ingesting tobacco
- Letting pigmented beverages sit on your teeth some a long period
- Having scratches on the surface of the bonded tooth
- Use of pigmented chemicals/medicines inside the mouth for oral treatment
- The bonding agent has become old.
Dental bonding is not meant to last forever. It suffers from occasional wear and tears. As time passes, you should expect some change in the shade of your bonded tooth. If your bonding is ten years old, you may not expect it to shine as if it is new.
Can my bonding fail even if I do not smoke tobacco or drink coffee?
Dental bonding can fail with time because of the failure of the bonding agent. Research shows bonding agents can be affected by chewing, the quality of a person’s saliva, and the constant change in temperature inside one’s mouth. A weakened bonding agent lets water penetrate its layer, thus accelerating the degradation process. This process continues independently of smoking or consumption of coffee or red wine.
What can you do to whiten your bonded tooth?
You can have white bonded teeth in two ways: by replacing your discolored resin bonding and avoiding bonding in favor of veneers.
Replacing discolored bonding
Your dentist can do that within one appointment. The process is not painful and not invasive. You may remember that the resin composite was an added layer to your tooth. Your dentist did not have to shave off your enamel to place the resin composite. The extra layer will now be removed, under which will remain your natural tooth.
After removing the bonding resin, you should whiten your teeth and give a shade to your discolored or misshapen teeth matching the shade of your other teeth.
Replacing bonding with veneers
Veneers are more expensive than dental bonding but last longer and hardly get discolored.
You may choose either ceramic veneers or composite veneers. Remember that ceramic veneers last longer than composite veneers.
Veneers can be used for anything that bondings are used for. Many patients receive veneers as a treatment for their chipped, broken, or misshapen teeth.
Understand that preparing your tooth for veneers requires the removal of tooth enamel. It is an irreversible process and can be painful.
Also Read: Dental Bonding for Enamel Loss
Why can’t I whiten my bonded tooth?
Tooth bonding uses a substance called composite resin. It can be of many shades. You choose the shade you want before your treatment. If that shade changes, or if it gets discolored, you can’t whiten it. The reason is that the resin does not respond to whitening systems like your tooth’s enamel. In-office whitening uses a higher concentration of hydrogen peroxide than other formulas available on the market. Even that is not good enough to whiten the composite resin, let alone bleaching, whitening rinses, or tray-based tooth whiteners.
Can dark stains on my bonded teeth be polished off?
Some dark stains can be polished off your bonded teeth. But those stains must be superficial, and your dentist has to feel comfortable polishing without harming your bonding.
If the stains have attacked the composite resin already, your bonded teeth may not be polished off.
Generally speaking, you should leave such a matter to your professional dentist to decide. Your dentist has the tools and equipment to examine your bonded teeth thoroughly before giving you an answer.
If your bonding is old, replacing it to eliminate its stains is better.
How to replace tooth bonding to get bright white teeth?
Let a dental practitioner examine your teeth to see if your teeth suffer from enamel loss or gum disease or if you have cavities. Then whiten your teeth, concealing the bonded tooth. Finally, choose the shade of your whitened natural teeth for your new bonding. Replace the old bonding with the new one.
Bonding is a cosmetic treatment. Doing it by yourself does not guarantee a beautiful smile. Let your dentist take care of the entire process.
What can you do to avoid bonding discoloration?
Having nice white teeth largely depends on yourself. True that some matters are out of our hands. But you can do a lot to make sure that your teeth are not discolored. Consider the following:
- Brush your teeth regularly.
- Cut coffee, tea, and pigmented beverages.
- Do not consume red wine. Use a straw if you have to.
- Quit tobacco consumption.
- Get treatment for acid reflux.
- Have a healthy mouth.
Sources:
- Colgate
- Journal of Evidence-Based Dental Practice
- Frontiers in Dental Medicine
- Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI)
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