Depending on the material of the fake teeth, they may or may not be able to be whitened. The fake teeth can be acrylic such as denture teeth, porcelain like veneers or crowns, and also composite resins like dental fillings. These materials are inherently different from the structure of a natural tooth so whitening them with hydrogen peroxide may not give the same results.
According to the American Dental Association (ADA), tooth colored restorations such as crowns and implants will not change colors. However, they made no mention of acrylic denture teeth nor tooth colored filling materials. Do the same rules apply to them as well?
We will review all of the different types of fake teeth material and explain whether or not they can be whitened in color. If they don’t change colors are there any side effects trying trying to bleach them?
Can you whiten denture teeth?
Fake denture teeth will get a little bit whiter if you try whitening them. The difference may not even be that perceivable to the naked eye.
Basically what we’re trying to say is to not expect results like traditional teeth whitening where your teeth change multiple shades. The main reason for that is that denture teeth are made of acrylic so the peroxide doesn’t quite work the same way on it.
According to a study in the Journal of Prosthodontic Research, the color changes from using whitening denture cleansing tablets were clinically insignificant. They compared Corega tabs (made by GSK, the same manufacturer as Polident) and The Bony Plus (a foreign product). They found that the Corega tabs did whiten slightly more than the other one but it was still mild.
A different study experimented with various denture products and their effects on the change in color. The results were that alkaline peroxide had the greatest color change, albeit small than all the other solutions. The other solutions were distilled water and 0.5% sodium hypochlorite (bleach).
The alkaline peroxide is basically what is present in all denture cleansing tablets that are whitening. The primary agent that you may know them by is sodium carbonate peroxide, which is a mix of baking soda and peroxide. The alkaline peroxide is essentially how products like Polident and Efferdent whiten and clean denture teeth.
In conclusion, the whitening effect from various products such as whitening cleansing tablets and actual bleach itself only produced a mild result. Do not expect in-office teeth whitening results with trying to whiten denture teeth because they won’t really change much in color.
Can you whiten fake teeth with porcelain?
Fake teeth such as porcelain veneers and porcelain crowns are typically very resistant to staining and color changes. In other words they don’t really discolor as much as your enamel would. They will typically look fairly similar to the day that they were first placed in your mouth.
It is due to this reason that patients seek out porcelain teeth whenever they want “permanent whitening”. It is because the color doesn’t really change. Normal teeth whitening with bleaching will reverse and subside over time but the porcelain will not.
Nonetheless, it is also due to the fact that they don’t really change colors that bleaching them doesn’t seem to have any effect. According to the ADA, your porcelain veneers and crowns will not change colors even with any type of whitening.
According to a study in the Journal of Dentistry, a 6% hydrogen peroxide whitening gel had no effect on the surfaces of porcelain restorations. The researchers even attempted to observe any changes under a scanning electron microscope but found nothing.
A different study evaluated the effects of whitening strips on porcelain crowns and veneers. They also found that there were no discernible color changes to the porcelain restorations.
Overall, your porcelain veneers shouldn’t really stain nor change color much after they’re put in. They are resistant to not only stains but also to teeth whitening as well. It is due to their color stability that patients choose them over teeth whitening if they want a more permanent solution.
Can you whiten dental fillings?
You may be surprised but composite dental fillings can potentially change colors when subjected to peroxide bleaching.
According to the Journal of The Canadian Dental Association, packable and nanohybride composites did change colors after 15% carbamide peroxide treatment. The color was even more noticeable when subjected to 35% hydrogen peroxide. Despite the color change, the results were still clinically acceptable.
However according to a study in the Dental Materials Journal, there were noticeable color changes in the tested composites. They even suggested that the fillings may require replacement after treatment. This implies that the color change may not have been acceptable.
A different study found that not all composites changed colors. Only the polyacid-modified composites changed colors while the other tested ones did not.
With that being said, there were contradictory studies which showed that composite resin fillings were actually resistant to bleaching treatment. In other words, the whitening had no effect on the color of the dental fillings.
In conclusion, there were studies which showed that they can change colors while others that said they couldn’t. It may have to do with the type of composite resin that was used because there are many different types.
More studies will need to be conducted in the future for a definitive answer.
Takeaway
For the most part it seems like teeth despite what they are made of don’t seem to change colors much.
The acrylic denture teeth can potentially whiten a tiny bit but it isn’t really noticeable. Unfortunately this means if you wanted them whiter you would need the entire set of dentures to be remade.
The porcelain veneers and crowns also don’t seem to change colors. In fact they’re pretty much stain resistant as well as bleaching resistant. This is a good thing and a bad thing. The good news is that they’ll look the same as the day they were put in. The bad news is if you wanted them whiter, you would have to replace them.
Surprisingly composite fillings can potentially change colors. Although it may depend on the type of composite that was used since some studies reported no color changes at all while others did.
Our advice is if you were to whiten your teeth, we would avoid the fake teeth. That way you save on whitening gel since they won’t really change much anyway.