What is PAP teeth whitening? 

PAP is the abbreviation for phthalimidoperoxycaproic acid and is the main whitening ingredient in our whitening products. It is a non-peroxide whitening agent which has been clinically proven to be an effective whitener when compared to traditional hydrogen peroxide whitening methods which damages enamel and gum health.  

PAP isn’t as widely used as other peroxides for whitening due to the costings required to have better ingredients and is still relatively new to the market. 

How does PAP teeth whitening work? 

Although PAP is an alternative ingredient to hydrogen peroxide for whitening teeth, it does work much the same with some key differences that makes PAP a better alternative. Let's start with how teeth whitening works before diving into how PAP whitens teeth. 

There are two types of whitening: physical and chemical. Physical whitening is the removal of superficial stains using abrasive agents such as toothpaste or prophy paste, or through bleaching processes, which rely on chemicals to penetrate enamel and dentine. Chemical whitening bleaches your teeth on both the surface and removes stains embedded slightly deeper by breaking apart the stain compound through a process called oxidisation. 

There are three main ingredients that can be used in chemical teeth whitening:

  • Hydrogen peroxide
  • Carbamide peroxide
  • Phthalimidoperoxycaproic acid (PAP) 

Each of these ingredients whitens teeth by oxidising stains and lightening the overall tooth colour. They work by entering through the enamel layer and altering and breaking down the molecules that hold colour, the smaller the molecule the lighter the colour. 

The difference between these whitening ingredients is that when peroxide chemicals get to work they release free radicals that can damage your teeth and gum tissue which can lead to problems such as sensitivity. PAP does not release free radicals when it oxidises stains, making it much safer for you to use to whiten your teeth.