If you want to whiten your teeth, then you might not be sure whether to choose a bleaching treatment or whether to have veneers fitted. Whitening through bleaching uses chemical reactions to change the colour of your teeth; veneers are specialist shells that sit on top of your teeth.

Sometimes, an in-clinic whitening treatment is the best choice. When might you want to take this route?

1. Your Teeth Are In Good Shape

If your teeth are generally in good shape, then a whitening treatment might be your best option. Dentists use these treatments to remove stains on the teeth and to move their shades up to make them look whiter without causing any damage.

While veneers are also an effective way to get a whiter smile, they involve a more invasive surgical procedure that changes the surface of your teeth permanently. Your dentist will shave off tiny amounts of the front of a tooth before they fit a veneer. You need to make the tooth thinner for the veneer shell to look natural.

Once you take this route, you can't restore a veneered tooth later. Your enamel doesn't grow back. So, if you simply need to increase whiteness on otherwise sound teeth, then an in-chair whitening treatment might give you the results you need.

2. You're On A Budget

Veneers can eat into your budget, especially if you want to put them on all your visible front teeth. Each tooth has to go through a preparation process. You have to have individual veneers made to fit your teeth. Then, your dentist has to fit the veneers. This permanent boost to your smile might be too expensive for you right now.

Teeth whitening procedures will cost you less. You can brighten your smile even if you don't have a lot of spare cash at the moment.

3. You Aren't Sure Which Choice To Make Yet

If you're torn between bleaching and veneers, then you should take your first step towards whiter teeth carefully. If you go straight for veneers, then you make an irreversible decision. You can try a whitening treatment first to see how well it works for you. If you aren't happy with the shades you get, then you can have veneers fitted later. This is also a good way of whitening your teeth in the short term while you save for a full veneer treatment.

The whitening treatment you choose depends on a lot of factors. In some cases, say if you have internal staining or a problem with a tooth, then your dentist might recommend veneers over a whitening procedure. For more advice, contact your cosmetic dentistry clinic.