With the continuous introduction of teeth whitening products, and mostly with the help of social media, there’s a lot of pressure on having a flashy and flawless bright smile.
Brighter and whiter smiles are now more common than ever, and so it comes to no surprise that getting a brighter smile is in huge demand, and the quicker the results – the better.
There are many teeth whitening methods in dentistry today, from in-office bleaching techniques to home teeth whitening kits and even natural home remedies.
With the many options to choose form, it can be quite confusing to select a tooth whitening product and to understand how it works and if it’s right for you, below I list the quickest ways of getting the whitest smile in order of effectiveness. The final point will be the quickest way in achieving a whitest smile, in just under half an hour, so make sure to read till the end.
As there are several teeth whitening options to choose from, it’s easy to get confused when wanting to get a whiter smile, especially if it is your first time undergoing teeth whitening. Most of the whitening methods differ in their strength of the whitening/bleaching chemical used, and in the time that this chemical is applied on teeth.
There are many different types of stains that can form on your teeth. Materials that whiten teeth remove only external stains, deeper stains will need more serious dental work and so teeth whitening products will not work on them.
1. Avoid foods that cause teeth staining
Drinking a lot of tea, coffee, and red wine causes heavy teeth staining. Smoking frequently is also a common cause of teeth staining.
Try quitting these habits for 2 weeks, or at least dramatically reducing them – while continuing to brush your teeth normally and you may be surprised at the results.
Foods that cause teeth staining:
- Coffee and tea
- Red sauces (tomato-based sauces)
- Beetroot
- Soft drinks
- Red wine
- Fruits and berries (e.g. blueberries, cherries, and even pomegranate)
2. Brush your teeth with baking soda
Once every week, using baking soda instead of toothpaste to brush your teeth may help to remove teeth staining. Baking soda is considered as an abrasive (which can penetrate slightly through the outer layer of your teeth to remove any stains) and so can actually be harmful to your teeth.
Therefore, if you are going to use it make sure that you only use it once a week, and don’t use it for an extended period of time.
If you don’t see any changes within three weeks, then stop it’s use to prevent teeth sensitivity or any further dental problems.
When brushing your teeth with baking soda, use a toothbrush with soft-bristles, and brush your teeth with gentle circular strokes, avoiding aggressive brushing motions to prevent any damage.
3. Whitening toothpaste
One of the strongest and quickest methods to obtain a whiter smile has been proven to be using a whitening toothpaste. Regular toothpastes have a number of ingredients, the most important being at least 1450 ppm Fluoride. Most whitening toothpastes however, add another important ingredient, that is responsible for the teeth whitening – hydrogen peroxide.
Hydrogen peroxide is an abrasive bleaching material that causes teeth whitening. It’s the same material that dentists use during a professional in-office teeth whitening session, but in whitening toothpaste it’s at a much lower (and relatively safer) concentration.
So try using whitening toothpaste twice a day, and see if you are satisfied with the results, but you will probably have to use whitening toothpastes for a few weeks before you can even begin to see any clear transformation.
Avoid using activated charcoal teeth whitening toothpastes, as the research regarding their safety or even degree of success isn’t sufficient enough yet.
4. Home teeth whitening kits
There are several options for home-whitening kits that you can choose from, but in my opinion the most effective are whitening trays or whitening strips.
You can buy both already prefabricated and ready at the store, or you can also choose to buy custom made whitening trays from your dentist. These may take a longer time to make, but will fit better in your mouth and whiten your teeth with more efficiency.
Try using home-whitening kits for a few weeks and you will definitely notice a clear difference in the shade of your smile.
If you’re unsatisfied with the results, or think that home-whitening kits will take too long to achieve your desired results, then you are left with the final and quickest option:
5. Professional teeth whitening
In this procedure, which is also known as “in-office teeth bleaching”, your dentist will apply a protective barrier on your gums to protect them, and then a strong concentration of the bleaching agent hydrogen peroxide (around 35%) is applied on your teeth for a session.
Each session is usually 30 – 60 minutes, and sometimes several sessions are done until your teeth reach the desired whiteness and shade.
There are different types of teeth whitening systems that your dentist may use and sometimes the whitening session will also involve the use of a special light that may quicken the action of the whitening agent.
Teeth sensitivity is an extremely common symptom of teeth whitening and should be expected, even though it’s only temporary during the session, it can also last for several days after, especially if you are undergoing several whitening sessions.
Conclusion for fastest way to whiten teeth
Getting an in-office bleaching teeth whitening is by far the quickest and most effective way to get whiter teeth. If you’re looking to get whiter teeth for an occasion, or you need a brighter smile by a certain day, then getting an in-office whitening should be your first choice.
In-office teeth bleaching is however the most expensive option (around $400 – $1000) and it also has some side effects like sensitivity.
If you want a whiter smile and aren’t pressed for time, then you can consider a whitening toothpaste for a couple of weeks. If you don’t see any results then try a home teeth whitening kit. If this also fails to give you the pearly white smile that you’ve been dreaming of, then you’ll need to go for professional teeth bleaching.
Remember to continue brushing your teeth twice a day like normal, and to avoid (or keep to a minimum) foods that cause teeth staining.
