Eight Ways To Whiter Teeth

Handy tips from your Chelmsford dentist to help you maintain a whiter, brighter smile.

When it comes to the aesthetics of teeth, the most common concern that we hear from patients is that their teeth are no longer as white as they used to be. There are a number of possible reasons for this which you can read about below. Tooth discolouration isn’t something that you have to put up with though and there is no reason why you shouldn’t have attractive teeth, whatever your age.

In today’s blog, we address ways that you can help to keep your teeth bright and attractive for as long as possible, as well as taking a look at some of the options that we have available at Blue Sky Dental to help you if you are already unhappy with their colour.

1 – Brush your teeth well

This one should go without saying. As well as helping to remove sugars and bacteria that could lead to tooth decay, brushing your teeth also helps to remove staining substances from the enamel of your teeth. Make sure that the bristles of your brush are healthy and not worn and use a reputable brand of toothpaste that contains fluoride. Be cautious about teeth whitening toothpastes. These have a minimal effect only and some contain additional abrasive ingredients that can damage the tooth enamel if used too vigorously.

2 – Beware staining food and drinks

Some food and drinks are notorious for staining teeth. These include coffee and tea, red wine, dark coloured fruit juices, soya sauce, dark berries, curries, balsamic vinegar and many more. The list is fairly endless but if you moderate the ones mentioned, you will certainly help to maintain the whiteness.

3 – Avoid ‘fizzy’ drinks

With the exception of fizzy water (and there is some concern about the ‘bubbles’ in that being harmful to teeth), most carbonated drinks will contribute to discolouring your teeth. While darker ones such as colas can have an additional effect, any fizzy drink is likely to contain sugar and acids and this can damage the enamel surface of the teeth. This will lead them to have a rough texture that enables staining products to stick to it more easily. Regular use of these drinks may also cause sufficient damage to the enamel for tooth sensitivity to become a problem.

4 – Quit smoking

We probably don’t have to tell you that smoking affects the colour of your teeth as well as being a real threat to both oral and general health. Smokers are likely to have teeth that range from a shade of yellow to a dark brown depending on the degree of their smoking habit. If you smoke, we strongly advise that you seek help to quit as soon as possible.

5 – See your dentist regularly

Seeing a dentist at Blue Sky Dental on a regular basis is an essential part of your overall oral health regime. In addition to enabling us to monitor any problems and treat them during their earlier stages, we may be able to detect early stages of tooth discolouration and offer advice on the best way to reverse it.

6 – Don’t grow old!

If we never grew old, we would have every chance of keeping our teeth looking white and attractive. Obviously, we will all (hopefully) grow older and one of the consequences of this is that the appearance of our teeth changes. One thing that happens is that the dentin layer beneath the tooth enamel darkens in colour and this shows through the translucency of the enamel making our teeth look discoloured. No amount of brushing will change this fact but the good news for our patients is that treatments are available to correct this. If you are in this situation, please read on for more information.

7 – Consider a teeth whitening procedure

If your teeth have already started to darken, whether from staining or from becoming more ‘mature’, one of the best and most straightforward ways to whiten teeth again is to have a whitening procedure, carried out by our experienced cosmetic dentists. This non-invasive treatment can whiten your teeth by several shades in a short period of time and is relatively inexpensive as well.

8 – Consider porcelain veneers

Badly stained or discoloured teeth can be a real challenge and even a teeth whitening procedure may not whiten them as much as you would like. Some patients prefer to try this route first though and we advise that you discuss this with the dentist first. For many people though, porcelain dental veneers are a more successful and long lasting option. However badly stained your teeth are, you can have a great looking smile again by having dental veneers fitted at our practice.

We hope that you found this blog useful and we are always happy to help and offer advice regarding discoloured teeth, whether they are slightly discoloured or severely stained. If you would like to talk to one of the dentists at our Chelmsford practice about this, please call us to arrange an appointment on 01245 211070 and we’ll be delighted to help.