Should you brush your teeth after utilizing whitening strips?

Can You Whiten Your Dental Implant?

As part of dental implant treatment , the dentist moulds a crown that matches the shade of your natural teeth when the implant is fixated to the jawbone.  As time goes on, the implant, just like natural teeth, can degrade in shade and colour if your dental implant aftercare routine isn’t strong enough. This raises the question of whether there are any appropriate cosmetic treatments available to lighten the shade of an implant to avoid showing an awkward smile. 

When the implant becomes darker, it is actually completely natural. Your implant works and functions like your other teeth and when you eat and drink certain dark solids and liquids, the implant can become dark and change in shade.

One question many patients ask is, can you whiten your dental implant?

Unfortunately, there are no specific whitening treatments that can whiten your dental implant. The only solution is to replace the crown with a new one. Why is this? Well, if you attempt to apply a whitening bleach agent, the acrylic material will scratch. This means you’re likely to experience discolouration. 

Although, dental implants are made out of porcelain material. porcelain is stain-resistant and there highly unlikely that they’ll need whitening early.

Dentistry smile

Do Implants Stain Themselves?

Porcelain material is stain resistant but this doesn’t mean that it’s permanently resistant. This means it can become discoloured in the future. This is dictated by your lifestyle and diet. This includes:

  • Drinking sofas and coffee
  • Smoking tobacco
  • Drinking alcohol
  • Poor oral hygiene

For your smile to stay strong with a fitted dental implant, your lifestyle and diet play a vital role for your smile to remain strong and shiny. Other foods to avoid include citrus, which can cause acid to spread across your teeth, red meat and sauces.

How Can I Reduce The Chances Of Discolouration?

Treat your dental implant with the same level of care as you would for your natural teeth. To reduce the chances of discolouration, follow these oral hygiene steps:

  • Keep The Implant Area Clean – It is important that food debris does not become stuck around the implant as this can cause plaque build-up around the implant. Keep brushing and flossing your teeth and ensure you rinse your mouth with water after a meal.
  • Regularly Visit The Dentist – The dentist can provide vital information regarding your implant, including oral hygiene recommendations and whether you may need further treatment. The dentist will always keep you and your smile on the right track.
  • Do Not Use Your Implant For Bad Habits – Your teeth should never be used for anything other than mouth functioning such as biting, chewing and smiling. If you use your implant for habits such as opening packaging, biting on ice and your nails or grinding your teeth.

Aftercare for your dental implant

Lifestyle and overall maintenance comprising oral hygiene and a balanced lifestyle will ensure you never need your crown to be replaced. Implants can last a lifetime, but only if they’re regularly looked after.

Are you an implant patient seeking support? Contact our Garran Dental team. Contact us here today.

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