Are Teeth-Whitening Products Safe For Kids?

[HeatherNYC]

I drink coffee. A lot of it. As a result, my pearly whites are not so pearly or white. I love my whitening toothpaste and am going to try those strips soon. But, as is the case with most things she sees me do, my daughter often wants to try it too. Now, she's 4, so there is no way she needs teeth whitening products, but it got me thinking about when she is older, maybe in her teens. When she becomes more interested in how she looks and all of that stuff (a time that I am dreading). Are these products safe for kids?

There is no definitive answer out there, mainly because there haven't been studies done on the long-term affects of teeth whitening on kids. Most products on the market say do not use on kids under 12, but, from the research I've done, many say that you should wait to do any sort of teeth whitening until they are 18.

The main issue is that kids' teeth are still forming, still strengthening. As a result, kids' enamel is easier to penetrate, which means the inside of the tooth will be affected by the chemicals more easily. This can cause increased sensitivity, which no one wants to have, especially our little kiddos. Again, there's not a huge amount of info out there about other effects of those chemicals, so it is best to wait until that enamel gets good and strong.

But there may be exceptions or a difficult situation where your child may need whitening. If your child does want to whiten her teeth and she's under the age of 18, the best and safest thing to do is see your dentist and ask to him. See what he may recommend for your individual issue and go from there.

Do you use teeth-whitening products? Do your kids? 

[sarah824]

I use a toothpaste with whitening stuff in it. So does DS. DD still uses a children's toothpaste because she can't figure out how to not swallow it.

[menmy2lilmen]

I use mouth wash and tooth paste that whitens. The boys have their own tooth paste. Hopefully when they get old enough to want to try whiten products we will have  a good answers.

[PoehlerBear1983]

I use toothpaste with whitening in it but thats it. My kids are too young to need anything

[deedee3849]

I use whitening toothpaste sometimes. My kids do not and I won't encourage it. 

[slw123]

I occassionally use tooth whitener, but I would never let my children use it until they were about 16 or so.

[NicholasMama608]

 I use crest white strips.  I love them.

[momof2gingers]

I alternate between Crest and baking soda for my teeth, My oldest DS uses crest and my youngest ds still uses Grins & Giggles. The whitening stuff makes my teeth hurt, so I don't give it to the boys.

[Kainalu55]

i have a crest toothpaste that's supposed to whiten teeth, but other than that i don't, although i'd love to fet them wghitened.  I wouldn't use that stuff on my kids though...maybe when they're teens if they need it

[Kainalu55]

does baking soda work well?

Quoting momof2gingers:

I alternate between Crest and baking soda for my teeth, My oldest DS uses crest and my youngest ds still uses Grins & Giggles. The whitening stuff makes my teeth hurt, so I don't give it to the boys.

[Kainalu55]

do those work well?

Quoting NicholasMama608:

 I use crest white strips.  I love them.