We will tell you about some traditional and home teeth-whitening remedies, but – first – here’s some free advice from Temple Dental Wellness: one of the best ways to keep your teeth as white as possible is to prevent them from getting stained or discoloured in the first place. Understanding just what causes staining and discoloration can help avoid those problems.
What causes tooth stains?
Two of the most common factors that discolour your teeth are: what you eat and drink and whether you smoke. When it comes to eating and drinking, many common foods and beverages stain the outermost layer of your teeth — the enamel layer. Common foods and beverages that have this effect include coffee, tea, sodas, red wine, soy-based sauces, tomato-based sauces, curries, berries (blueberries, for example), and fruits (pomegranates, for example) and vegetables (beets, for example).
Your diet aside, the biggest preventable factor that can stain your enamel is smoking. Smoking produces sticky substances including tar and nicotine that will yellow your teeth.
You can minimize the staining effect of your diet and habits by brushing your teeth immediately and thoroughly after indulging, but your teeth will still become stained and duller over time.
Are there natural ways to whiten your teeth?
Your dentist in NE Calgary can whiten your teeth in their office or even provide you with trays of whitening products to use at home. You can even find whitening products using bleaching compounds in grocery stores and drug stores. What if you want a chemical-free, natural and DIY option for whitening your teeth? Here are four options for natural teeth whitening in NE Calgary.
Baking soda is a common ingredient in commercial teeth whitening products but is also a readily available and inexpensive ingredient you can find in the baking aisle at any grocery store. Baking soda has a natural whitening effect, is gently abrasive and helps to establish an alkaline environment in your mouth to help keep bacteria at bay. To whiten your teeth with baking soda, just make a paste with one teaspoon of baking soda and two teaspoons of water before brushing with that paste just like you would regular toothpaste.
Oil pulling is a traditional natural remedy for teeth whitening that many people claim produces a whitening effect. Oil pulling means swishing a tablespoon of an edible oil — sesame oil, coconut oil and sunflower oil are common options — in your mouth and pulling the oil between your teeth for 15 minutes before spitting it out. The touted benefits of oil pulling include the removal of bacteria that can contribute to plaque accumulation and gingivitis (gum disease).
Hydrogen peroxide is another common ingredient in professional dental whitening compounds, albeit in much stronger concentrations than you can purchase at your local drugstore. To use hydrogen peroxide at home, purchase some from a drugstore or the pharmacy aisle of your grocery store — in a 1.5% or 3% solution. Combine two teaspoons of hydrogen peroxide with one teaspoon of baking soda and use instead of using your regular toothpaste.
Apple cider vinegar is another readily available grocery item that can have a whitening effect on your teeth over time. Simply combine some apple cider vinegar with water and swish the combination around your mouth for a few minutes before spitting. The downside of using apple cider vinegar is that it is highly acidic and that acid can damage the enamel layer on your teeth. When using apple cider vinegar for teeth whitening near you, don’t use it every day and be sure to rinse thoroughly with clean water when you’re finished.
Keep in mind that there are some stains and discolorations on teeth that can not be whitened away naturally or even with commercial or dental whitening products. Examples of those difficult stains are stains caused by infections, trauma or the side effects of medications. If your teeth are stained by those issues, you should consult with a dentist in NE Calgary who’ll give you better alternatives to achieve your goals.
