Meet Dr. James Willoughby, Poughkeepsie Dentist

Teeth Whitening at Dr. Willoughby's Dentist Office Poughkeepsie

Teeth Whitening at Dr. Willoughby's Dentist Office Poughkeepsie

Teeth whitening has one of the highest patient satisfaction ratings out of any dental procedure and the amount of whitening that can be achieved is amazing.  I get many questions from my patients about the difference in over the counter whiteners and the whitening services that I offer in my Poughkeepsie dental office.

To start, there are many systems available to use to whiten your teeth.  All use hydrogen peroxide or carbamide peroxide as the whitening agent.  The difference in over the counter vs. our systems is that dentists can use and dispense higher concentrations of whitening agent.  Thus improving the results and shorting the time required to achieve results.

Some people have success with using over the counter whitening strips.  These strips seem to work well for some people and not so well for others.  The problem is that there is no way to tell before using the product, which patients these products will work well for and which patients they will not work well for. 

In my office we offer Venus White Ultra trays and ZOOM chair-side whitening.  Venus White Ultra trays are pre-filled trays that our patients take home.  The patient wears the trays on their upper and lower teeth for one hour each day for seven to fourteen days.  For patients who want to receive faster results we offer ZOOM chair-side whitening.  The procedure takes about two hours.  The patient sits comfortably in our dental chair while a light shines on their teeth activating the whitening agent.  Most patients watch TV or listen to their Ipods.  Both systems can achieve amazingly white teeth with no alternation to the tooth.  The chair-side procedure is usually a little more costly but the results are achieved much faster.  
The take home kits work very well but requires more time and commitment from the patient.

Please feel to call our office at anytime with questions regarding teeth whitening or to schedule an appointment to have your teeth whitened today!  We service the entire Hudson Valley and are located at 46 Fox St. in Poughkeepsie New York.

Dentist Recommends Chewing Gum!

Surprised that a dentist would recommend his patients chew gum?

Well it’s not just any type of gum. It has to be gum, or sucking candy, that contains a special sugar called Xylitol. Xylitol looks and taste like regular sugar and is used as a sweetener in a variety of gums and candies.

Most gum and candy contain regular table sugar. Regular table sugar is used as a food source by decay forming bacteria in our mouths. These bacteria release an acid byproduct that eats into the surface teeth and starts the decay process.

Xylitol is a sugar that decay forming bacteria ingest but cannot metabolize and therefore, they eventually die off.  This allows healthy bacteria to flourish and increase in numbers. Studies have shown that taking in 5 to 10 grams of xylitol per day can reduce acid forming bacteria by up to 95% in 6 months. So go out and have all the xylitol sweetened gums and candy that you want and see you teeth get healthier then they have ever been.



For more information on how to keep your teeth healthly, contact Dr. James Willoughby at docwillo.com.