Professional At Home Teeth Whitening in Boise

Achieve a Brighter, Healthier Smile with At-Home Teeth Whitening

At Centennial Dental, we love helping you smile wider and brighter. We believe that your smile reflects your inner self; at least it should. If you are struggling with dullness or discoloration, you may not smile as widely and freely as you would like. We can help! Boise, ID dentist Jon Koeltl and the team at Centennial Dental love helping our patients feel great about their smile. We offer professional, at-home teeth whitening in Boise, Idaho that can give you a more confident and inviting smile without having to constantly visit your dentist. We help you to improve your smile in the comfort of your own home.

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Who is a Good Candidate for At Home Teeth Whitening? Your Dentist Knows

Adults of all ages are excellent candidates for teeth whitening treatment. Most of the discoloration we see is caused by external factors; smoking, or foods and beverages that are consumed on a regular basis. There is a straightforward reason for this . . .

Enamel looks very solid and strong. This is true, and it is also true that enamel has thousands of tiny pores, similar to your skin. What happens when you drink coffee, tea, soda, and just about anything other than water, is that microscopic particles from those beverages seep into pores and become trapped beneath the surface. The same thing happens with many different foods, including berries. Over time, these particles block light from reflecting off enamel as it used to, and your smile becomes dull. Fortunately, this is not a permanent condition.

A Word About Staining

We perform a thorough consultation and exam with every patient who is interested in at home teeth whitening. While the process is successful in most cases, there are some types of discoloration on which a strong bleaching agent will not be effective. These stains may be disguised behind porcelain veneers. To discuss your concerns about stained enamel, give us a call.

Frequently Asked Questions About Teeth Whitening

When you’re in our offices, we take impressions of your teeth. From these, we create a custom mouthpiece that precisely fits your teeth. Next, we provide you with syringes of carbamide peroxide or hydrogen peroxide whitening gel, along with thorough instructions for your home whitening. At home, you simply syringe the whitening gel into the mouthpieces and place them on your teeth for a few hours per day for up to two weeks. The nice thing about home whitening is that when you feel your teeth are beginning to look dingy again, you simply come back to Centennial and we provide you with a new batch of whitening gel and you repeat the process at home.

Teeth whitening only works on your natural tooth enamel. It doesn’t whiten porcelain veneers or crowns, or composite resin tooth-colored fillings. Before placing porcelain veneers or a crown, we usually want the teeth to be whitened first, returning them to their original natural color before we select the shade of the porcelain. Dental porcelain is highly resistant to staining, so those prosthetics don’t stain anywhere near the rate that natural tooth enamel does.

This may come as a surprise, but the professional at home teeth whitening procedure used today is the result of centuries of trial and error. History has provided clear evidence of the importance of a bright smile, with methods dating back to ancient Egypt.

Modern teeth whitening protocol involves a precise concentration of a mild bleaching solution based on hydrogen or carbamide peroxide. Most patients who undergo treatment feel no unpleasant side effects whatsoever. The most common side effect is mild, temporary sensitivity, which can be managed with remineralizing care, such as the use of a special toothpaste for a few days. If your teeth are sensitive before teeth whitening, let us know. We are happy to discuss ways to minimize the risk of this side effect before we proceed with your treatment.

In addition to the use of a gentle bleaching agent, our whitening process is conducted with a step-by-step technique that protects delicate gum tissue. Your smile is in good hands with us!

Carbamide peroxide and hydrogen peroxide are effective for removing stains that have settled into your slightly porous tooth enamel, but they don’t harm the enamel in any way. They simply loosen the particles causing the staining, not unlike how laundry detergent loosens stains in your clothes.

We would all love to have a brilliant smile that lasts a lifetime. This is possible with professional at home care, though the procedure itself may need to be repeated from time to time. The frequency of touch-up treatments will depend on the individual. For example, patients who smoke are likely to experience discoloration more quickly than non-smokers. If you love your morning cup of coffee or tea, your teeth will become stained again over time.

There are certain habits you can create to maximize your results from teeth whitening. These include:

  • Drink through a straw whenever possible.
  • Rinse your teeth after consuming coffee, tea, or red wine. Do NOT brush. The acidity of these beverages makes enamel vulnerable to demineralization.
  • Practice good oral hygiene, brushing twice a day and flossing daily.

Tips to Whiten Teeth

Once your teeth have been whitened, they will eventually stain again, particularly if you drink coffee, red wine, and the like. But there are some methods to help keep your teeth white

  • Use whitening toothpaste — Whitening toothpastes have light abrasives that gently scrub the teeth to remove stains. They can be used as your daily toothpaste.
  • Eat crunchy produce — Fruits and vegetables such as celery and apples are naturally crunchy and naturally abrasive. Eating them helps scrub offsome of the items that stain your teeth.
  • Help your enamel — Oral health problems can weaken your tooth enamel, a process known as demineralization. Fluoride is an effective way to strengthen your fluoride. Use toothpaste that has fluoride in it, or ask us about fluoride treatments at Centennial.
  • Eat more dairy — Eating and drinking foods such as yogurt, cheese, and milk that are high in calcium keep your enamel strong and more resistant to staining. Of course, more calcium in your diet is also important to keep your bones strong, so the benefits are double!


Are you ready to take the next step for a brighter smile? Dr. Koeltl and our expert team are ready to help! Contact Centennial Dental today to 
schedule your Boise teeth whitening appointment! We serve the Treasure Valley and the surrounding areas.

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