Who wouldn’t like a whiter smile? In fact, more and more people every year are purchasing over-the-counter whitening products to make their smiles as attractive as possible. That makes sense. A nice smile, after all, makes you feel better about yourself and more confident about your place in the world. But before you choose an over-the-counter whitening product, make sure you know that it will work. One product that sounds almost too good to be true are whitening pens, which – according to package claims – the user can simply wipe on their teeth in a few short minutes and enjoy a brighter smile. In this article, we’ll examine some of those claims about whitening pens and provide you with our assessment about these products.
While it’s true that some people may see limited results from a whitening pen, most will probably see no change whatsoever after using these products. There are several reasons for this. Most whitening pens contain hydrogen or carbamide peroxide, and while both of these ingredients are used in effective teeth whitening products, the simple act of dabbing them onto the tooth surface will have extremely limited (if any) effect at all unless they’re left on for an extended period of time. Another problem with whitening pens is that they don’t prevent saliva from washing away the whitening agent. Since you’re simply painting the solution onto your tooth surface, the saliva produced in your mouth will quickly wash away the whitening solution. Even if you see bubbles on your teeth after using a whitening pen, that doesn’t mean it’s making any difference in the shade of your teeth.
Now that we’ve explained why whitening pens don’t work – or don’t work well, at least – we should mention that this type of product might have some limited usefulness. When you eat or drink foods or beverages that easily stain teeth, it might actually be helpful to use a whitening pen immediately afterward to keep staining at a minimum. We don’t usually brush our teeth immediately after a meal, so foods and beverages that produce stains are left on the surface of our teeth for some amount of time prior to brushing. That can allow stains to begin forming. Using a whitening pen right after eating may help to reduce the staining effect. Of course, you could brush right after a meal, which would be just as effective, if not more so.
If you really want your teeth to be significantly whiter, contact your dentist office and ask about professional whitening products. Those whitening kits provided by your dentist are always more effective than any over-the-counter product.
