Healthy Living / Lifestyle

Whitening Your Smile: The Best Ways to Banish Staining

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Today we wish to talk to you about the best ways to whitening your smile.  Do you get self-conscious or uncomfortable about your smile? Overindulging in caffeine, alcohol, teas and red wine can lead to your pearly whites becoming murky greys or musky yellows. This can really impact your self-confidence.

Teeth staining is a very common problem, and as a result, a huge number of options are available to have you sporting a bright white grin in no time. From natural, at-home remedies, to professional treatment options, there is no shortage of choices when it comes to teeth whitening.

Back to Basics

It’s better to prevent the problem, rather than try to cure it – so avoiding foods and beverages that are infamous for enamel staining is your first step to maintaining a bright white smile. If you do happen to go for a coffee, red wine, dark berry, or tea, then try to brush your teeth, chew gum, or rinse with mouthwash as soon as you can afterward.

Whilst they may take a little longer to yield results, there are several at-home remedies that you can try to lighten your teeth by a few shades. Some of them don’t even involve applying anything to your teeth – something as simple as increasing fruits and vegetables in your diet can go a long way to improving your dental health. Crunchy fruits, in particular, will help to scrub plaque from teeth, whilst acidic fruits, such as pineapples and strawberries, can act as natural whitening agents.

Swirling coconut oil or apple cider vinegar in your mouth is another natural option when it comes to at-home whitening. Both of these will also help to manage bacteria in the mouth, decreasing the risk of bad breath and plaque build-up. Adding a baking soda solution or activated charcoal formula to your brushing regime can also remove tough stains. These can be harsh on teeth though, so make sure to only brush with them once or twice a week.

Up the Anti

Whilst it might seem obvious, the first and best at-home treatment for your teeth is regular and thorough brushing and flossing. You can integrate a whitening toothpaste into your daily regime to increase the lightening effect. Typically, these solutions will contain a mild abrasive and a small amount of bleach.

Whitening strips and trays are products that you can add to your brushing routine to accelerate your whitening journey. Generally, these products work by bathing the teeth in a lightening solution for an extended period of time (usually an hour or two). As a result, the effects are usually much quicker than those seen with home remedies.

If you want almost instant results that continue to improve over time, then blue LED light devices are the go-to at-home treatment. The light helps the whitening formula penetrate the teeth and the results are accelerated.

Professional Treatments

Getting a whiter smile is great, as long as you’re not doing damage to your teeth in the process. That’s where the help of a professional dentist comes in. With access to a much wider variety of treatment options – including those that are able to not only whiten teeth, but also repair, realign, and straighten, you can rest assured that your perfect smile is achievable.

Results obtained via professional clinics are often more consistent and long-lasting than at-home treatments. Best of all, you know you’re not doing a huge amount of damage to your teeth by enlisting the help of a dentist. Heading to a trusted and highly skilled dentist will ensure you walk away with a winning grin.

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