If you want whiter teeth and are considering getting them professionally whitened, you may want to think twice before doing this if you have sensitive teeth. Sensitive teeth can leave you with extreme pain during and after teeth-whitening, and sensitivity with teeth usually represents an oral problem that needs to be fixed before going through professional teeth-whitening services. This issue is normally caused by worn-out enamel, and here are a few things you should know about this.
Why Worn-Out Enamel Leads To Sensitivity
The enamel on your teeth is the outer layer of teeth and is a strong material used to protect your teeth. Over time and with bad habits, the enamel can wear away. The problem with this is that enamel does not replenish itself. In other words, once it is gone, it is gone for good. If your enamel is worn-out and gone, you will experience tooth sensitivity because there is nothing protecting your teeth.
The inner layer of your teeth is called dentin, and this layer is immediately exposed when the enamel is gone. When this happens, you will feel sensitivity with your teeth because there are small openings in the layer of dentin, and these small openings lead to nerves. The openings are called tubules, and the pain you feel is caused by the nerves that are exposed.
Reasons Enamel Wears Off
The enamel on your teeth is extremely strong; however, it cannot handle certain things. Grinding your teeth is one habit that enamel cannot handle. If you consistently do this at night when you sleep, you will eventually lose enamel on the teeth that are rubbing together.
Decay is a second cause of worn-out enamel. Acid from foods and beverages destroys teeth, and this is what leads to decay. Decay will eat away at the enamel on a tooth and will then begin eating away at the rest of the tooth.
What You Can Do About This
If you have any decay in your mouth or if you suffer from gum disease, your dentist will want to fix these issues before proceeding with tooth whitening. In some cases, taking care of the decay in a person's mouth will fix the sensitivity issues.
If your issues are very severe, professional whitening might not be a good way to get whiter teeth. Instead, your dentist might suggest using tooth bonding to fix the problems. Tooth bonding involves placing a material over the teeth, and this will act like enamel and can be colored to a shade that is whiter than the color of your teeth right now.
If you would like to learn more about professional teeth-whitening services and if you are a good candidate, contact a dentist, such as those at Graylyn Dental, today.
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