Q: So, I tried these whitening strips for the first time, just because I drink a lot of coffee. And I wouldn't mind seeing my teeth a shade whiter. It worked. But I have a horrible, horrible, horrible, stomach ache. I haven't gotten any sleep and the pain seems to be consistent. I've tried drinking lots of water to get it out of my system. Have any of this happened to you? If so, what on earth did you do to alleviate this pain? Or should I just head over to the hospital and hope to God, I'm not dying, because I feel like I am.
A: Whitening strips contain a large amount of hydrogen peroxide as a gel. Some brands suggest you sleep with it in your mouth and others only 30 minutes at a time. If you swallow a whole strip while you're sleeping during the night, or if you swallow a good amount of it during the 30 minutes you keep it in your mouth, then you'll experience some stomach discomfort... In the veterinary trade, hydrogen peroxide is used to make an animal vomit something it swallowed. It works as well as epicac syrup in many instances. It won't kill you, but you're doing about as much as you can for now...drinking fluids and trying to get it to pass.