Embarrassed To Post But Need Help: Possible brain damage from teeth whitening?

[Lizzy84]

A dental hygienist at my dentist’s office whitened my teeth with high-concentration 30% hydrogen peroxide teeth whitening gel.

Toward the end of the treatment, I felt increased brain fog, anxiety and concentration issues. Also, my throat was sore for two days after the treatment, so I know I swallowed at least a bit of the whitening gel.

It’s been over a month and the brain issues continue. I talked to the dentist about it, and she says hydrogen peroxide is safe, and she’s never had anyone experience issues other than temporary tooth sensitivity. Also, after the gel was removed I was given a mirror to see the difference. That’s when I noticed some a small piece of the “gum barrier” was on my tongue, and the hygienist got the piece off my tongue with her gloved hand. Whatever chemical was on her glove tasted sooo bad, and I swallowed whatever it was. Even though whatever was on her glove was so small, my mind is going in circles around what it could be/how dangerous it could be to my brain.So basically, I’m dealing with two fears at the same time: 1) can swallowing high-concentration hydrogen peroxide whitening gel cause brain damage. 2) could whatever unknown substance that was on my hygenist’s gloves have caused brain damage?

[Carnation]

No, to both.
Think logically. If that was the case practically most of the population would be brain damaged or dead.

[.Poppy.]

I believe that swallowing some hydrogen peroxide would cause an irritated throat, and it would potentially also cause you to have some stomach upset for a little while after, which obviously would have cleared up by now. It does not cause brain damage - and besides, most stuff they put in your mouth is safe enough for you to swallow a little of it, since that would happen frequently just by nature of what you're doing.

I really think the "side effects" you are experiencing are anxiety, as they are common anxiety symptoms. I wonder if you experiencing some while in office was just a rise in panic due to being at the dentist, which is also a pretty common thing (I don't have dentist anxiety and even I will get a little nervous/panicky sometimes).