In chair Zoom! Whitening works almost instantly because the active whitening agent is activated with a curing light. The light stimulates the gel which results in an immediate effect.

Both in chair whitening and take-home kits will result in short term sensitivity of your teeth. The reason for this is because the gel penetrates the enamel and gets into the inner layer of the tooth. This can cause sensitivity in most patients.

However, the sensitivity is merely transient. It normally lasts a few hours at the most.

At Ashford we use desensitizing paste and gels on your teeth during and after the procedure to ensure minimal discomfort for you.

Whitening is not harmful at all to your teeth. However, in certain situations you may not get the desired effect because of the specific nature of your tooth. The success of whitening is highly dependent on what your existing tooth enamel is like. This is why it is very important to have your teeth thoroughly inspected and checked by us before proceeding with whitening treatment.

We will always advise you if tooth whitening is right for you and exactly what kind of result to expect.

In most cases teeth will remain in their whitened state for more than 12-18 months before they need to be re-whitened. This is usually done using a take home kit. It is, in most cases unnecessary to do an in-chair whitening more than once in that time frame.

But how long teeth stay white depends a lot on your lifestyle and diet too. Consuming coffee, tea, wine, dark foods and lifestyle factors like smoking and alcohol consumption can increase the rate at which teeth discolour.