If you are looking for a whiter smile, then an at-home whitening kit can help. However, if you suffer from gum disease, then using a whitening kit can end up causing more harm than good. Attempting to whiten your teeth when you have gum disease can also cause your teeth to turn several different shades. The color change is difficult to remove unless you get a dental restoration. If you visit a dentist, they will most likely recommend against professionally whitening your teeth because of the infection. Luckily, there are a few things you can do to whiten your teeth when you suffer from gum disease. 

Reduce Inflammation Around Your Gum Line

If you suffer from any kind of gum disease, then your gum line is probably constantly inflamed. The inflammation is most noticeable after you brush and floss your teeth. You can reduce inflammation by improving your oral care. Gum disease is caused by poor oral care habits. In order to get your oral care habits up to par, you will need to brush your teeth following each meal and floss before going to bed. In addition, it is recommended that you use an oral rinse after your meals to kill off bacteria. If you have a mild form of gum disease, then the inflammation should reduce fairly quickly. Once this happens, you will be able to use a whitening kit to brighten your smile.

Get a Root Canal for More Serious Gum Disease

If you have a severe form of gum disease, then you will most likely need a root canal performed. This happens when the infection has already seeped below the tooth and has contaminated the dental pulp. If you whiten your tooth before the infection is removed, then the infected tooth will not whiten and this can aggravate the infected tooth. Therefore, undergo your root canal procedure and wait a few weeks for the area to settle down. Once the tooth is healthy and is no longer contaminated, then you can proceed with whitening your teeth.

Not being able to whiten teeth that are infected due to gum disease is not the end of the world. Instead, it is best to make sure that your teeth are as healthy as possible before using any kind of whitening kit. For more information about gum disease, how to prevent and treat it, and what you can do about whitening in the meantime, talk to dentists like George J Mendel DMD.