The Truth About Kor Bleaching on Severely Tetracycline Stained Teeth - Atlanta, GA

I have severely stained tetracycline teeth, and I tried Kor Deep Bleaching. I would not recommend it. It whitened my teeth beautifully with little discomfort, but it didn’t last more than a few days after I stopped bleaching.

Evolve (maker of Kor) claims that bleaching with Kor is “entirely permanent with easy monthly maintenance.” That might be true for people with normal teeth or mild tetracycline stains, but otherwise – no. After two in-office bleachings and 6 weeks of nightly bleaching, my teeth glowed white just like all the before and after photos the dentists post. I actually cried. HOWEVER, IT DIDN’T LAST! It actually felt kind of cruel. Only three days after stopping continuous bleaching, the stains started to creep back in. (I’d had no coffee, tea or other staining foods.)

I quickly bleached and it lightened. (Ever notice on dentist’s websites when they show dramatic before and after photos of tetracycline teeth bleached with Kor, that the “after photo” is taken “immediately after the final in office bleaching”? Those teeth are dehydrated white. They don’t stay that way, my friend. They don’t even stay a reasonable light color if you start with dark stains.) My doctor’s advice was to bleach weekly then taper it off until I bleached only once a month. I tried that for 3 months, but when I went beyond a week, my teeth got darker by the day. So I resigned myself to whitening once a week. (Whatever happened to “entirely permanent with easy monthly maintenance”?) But even on days I did not bleach, some of my teeth would feel pressure, like when you get food caught in them. And they felt cold even with my mouth closed.

It wasn’t painful, but it was uncomfortable all week. (These particular teeth had thin enamel, but I was NOT told that before I started. Ask your dentist specifically.) I also began wondering what exactly all this bleaching was really doing to the health of my teeth. Finally, my dentist said that irritating the teeth weekly like that long term was not healthy. I hate the dark stains on my teeth, but a series of possible root canals didn’t appeal to me either!

No one could have tried harder than me to make Kor work, but the beautiful white faded very quickly back into stains when I didn’t bleach every week. If you have significant stains, I would not look to Kor (as wonderful as they make it sound) unless you’re willing and your teeth have thick enough enamel to withstand weekly bleaching. The Kor folks don’t give those of us in that category the whole truth up front. That would hurt their bottom line...

I would save up for porcelain veneers or composite veneers which are less expensive. (A good dentist can make the composites look pretty good. Just check out your dentist’s “before and after photos” to make sure ….)

Tips: 1) Stay away from any stannous flouride products (like Crest Pro-Heath) which can actually stain your teeth! Sodium fluoride won’t do that.
2) For those people with lighter stains who want to try Kor, ask your dentist for prescription toothpaste like Colgate Previ Dent Enamal Protect. Helps with sensitivity and is low abrasion, which you want when bleaching so often.