How to Whiten Your Teeth

Just pick up any magazine and everyone on there you see will have perfectly white teeth.

Well for actors and models that can afford to go to specialized dentist and get special procedures to enhance the color of their teeth. For the rest of should we have to live with not quiet perfectly white teeth everyday? No we should not because for only a few cents any of us can have perfectly white teeth without seeing a special dentist or spending a fortune on gels and stripes or even using a whitening toothpaste.

One of the first things you will need to do to get your teeth their whitest is to follow the directions your dentist has been telling you since your were a child and that is to brush your teeth 2-3 times a day and to floss. Besides the basics of healthy tooth care there are additional things that you can do whiten your teeth.

The first thing to do is to wet your toothbrush and then dip it in some baking soda. Makes sure to only get the top of the toothbrush do not cover it all in the baking soda. Brush your teeth with the baking soda but you only need to brush the teeth themselves. You should not use this method to often because it can wear away at the enamel. It is a good idea to brush your teeth after you have done this because it could leave a bad taste in your mouth.

Read More

DIY: Whiten Your Teeth Naturally

There are many ways to whiten your teeth naturally. This is good for a lot of us that can't afford the $45.00 whitening strips, or the expensive whitening care your cosmetic dentist might offer. The secret to whitening your teeth is malic acid. I learned in chemistry class that Malic acid acts like an astringent to remove discoloration from your teeth. Strawberries are your cheap cosmetic dentists! This sweet tooth-cleanser removes stains like OxyClean: coffee, red wine, dark sodas and teas. This is a great natural remedy, but you have to make sure not to use it too much because as it removes stains it could also remove your tooth's healthy enamel.

You Need:

1 super ripe strawberry

½ teaspoon of baking soda

Soft toothbrush

Directions to Strawberry Whitening:

Place your rips strawberry in a zip-tight bag, and then squish your strawberry with your hand. If you want you could take a can and gently press down onto the strawberry so that you don't break open the bag. After your strawberry is squished add the baking soda, and mix. When your mixture is nicely mixed, use your soft tooth-brush and spread the mixture on the toothbrush's head. Spread (don't brush) the mixture onto your teeth. Leave the mixture on your teeth for five minutes, then brush thoroughly with toothpaste to remove the bakingsoda/strawberry mixture. Rinse your teeth thoroughly to get all of the mixture out. Then if you have some seeds in your teeth use floss to extract the seeds from your teeth. I said the mixture was not good if you used it a lot. If you want to keep whitening your teeth this way you should do it not more than once a week.

I tried this and my teeth haven't been this white in a long time. The strawberries are very effective. Then again, everyone has different types of teeth structure. If you use it every once a week and your teeth feel sensitive, try once every two weeks, and if that doesn't work add another week until you get comfortable. If your teeth are really sensitive I would not recommend you using baking soda. I tried it with and without baking soda and both ways were effective it just took longer to work when I only used the strawberries. Both ways are effective.

Other Options:

Brush your teeth after each big meal

You can try salt

Put baking soda on your toothbrush

Read More

Natural Tooth Whiteners Will Have You Smiling

Keep Your Teeth Sparkling Without Using Harsh Chemicals

Are you chagrined by your less-than-pearly whites, but concerned about what chemicals and abrasive whitening toothpastes might do to your gums and tooth enamel? Don't worry, mother nature has answers. Whether you prefer to buy prepared natural toothpaste or make your own tooth whitener at home, you can improve your smile without resorting to the use of harsh chemicals.

Know what to expect
Contrary to what ad agents would have us believe, the natural color of human teeth is not snow white. Even the healthiest teeth are slightly yellow or gray. Photos of models and celebrities have been usually touched up or the owners of those blinding white smiles have had porcelain veneers applied. Before you begin a whitening treatment, understand that you may only be able to lighten the color of your teeth by two or three shades. While light tea stains may go without much of a fight, grayness caused by the antibiotic tetracycline may be quite difficult to remove. What's more, if you continue the habits that stained your teeth, you'll have to redo the treatment a few months later.

Natural commercial products
The definition of "natural" is slippery, but whitening toothpastes marketed as natural usually are made only from herbs and minerals. This means no fluoride, aspartame, or other "unnatural chemicals." Be aware, though, that your definition of natural may differ from the manufacture's, so check the ingredients list before you buy. Some herbal pruducts available include:

Jason Natural Cosmetics Powersmile
Powersmile uses bamboo podwer, calcium carbonate, and silica to reverse dullness and discoloration. Another active ingredient, perilla seed, prevents sugars from bonding with minerals and forming tartar. The added peppermint oil leaves the mouth feeling fresh.

Vita-Myr
A unique toothpaste that combines cloves to kill germs, myrrh and folic acid to heal gums, and zinc to slow plaque growth. This herbal product is gentle, but effective enough to remove yellowing caused by plaque.

Nature's Gate Dental Therapy Whitening Gel
The silica, sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), pineapple, and bamboo powder in this toothpaste help whiten teeth, while the antiseptic qualities of goldenseal, sage, and licorice extracts keep the mouth clean. The toothpaste's good taste comes from refreshing mint oils and sweet stevia extract.

Kiss My Face Whitening Certified Organic Aloe Vera Toothpaste
This toothpaste whitens teeth with silica and Icelandic moss, and keeps gums in shape with horse chestnut. The soothing aloe vera this toothpaste contains makes it a good choice for those with sensitive gums.

Homemade Tooth whiteners

If you'd rather know exactly what goes into your toothpaste, you can make your own at home. As an added benefit, doing so will
save you some money, too.

Lemon Juice
Lemon juice is a natural bleaching agent and, used daily, can be as effective as chemical whiteners. Make a paste from one teaspoon of lemon juice and one teaspoon of salt and use this every time you brush.

Orange peels and Bay leaves
Powered bay leaves combined with ground orange peel can make an effective whitener. Simply rubbing the inner side of an orange peel over your teeth can also have a whitening effect.

Strawberries
Strawberries contains an enzyme that whitens teeth and can be used in place of toothpaste. You'll have to floss to get rid of the seeds, but the strawberry's taste makes up for that. Mash a large strawberry into a paste and either brush with this.

Hydrogen peroxide
Regularly rinsing your mouth with 3% hydrogen peroxide from the drugstore can also help lighten the color or your teeth. Be warned, though, that many find the taste and the foaming sensation of hydrogen peroxide unpleasant. Also, store-bought peroxide contains chemical stabilizers, so avoid swallowing any.

Keep them white
Strong teeth are stain-resistant teeth. Taking a multi-vitamin and drinking mineral water will help your teeth get the minerals they need to stay in top form. Needless to say, coffee, tea, and smoking will all discolor teeth, so avoiding these will help your teeth stay whiter. Many berries and some vegetables can also leave their mark on your teeth over time, so brush as soon as possible after eating or drinking anything likely to cause stains.

Read More

Laser Teeth Whitening - What You Need to Know

As an alternative to teeth whitening strips, laser teeth whitening is becoming increasingly popular these days. And with good reason, it is more convenient and a lot easier to have done than wearing whitening strips in your mouth.

Perhaps you have found yourself in the same shape as so many others. You look in the mirror and the teeth you see make you upset to say the least. Or, you never like to have photos taken because your teeth look the way they do. I can understand since I have also been there with you.

I am a heavy coffee drinker and one of the worst enemies of whiter teeth is coffee. With nearly 20 years of coffee drinking under my belt, my teeth looked more yellowish than they did white! I knew I needed to do something, but I didn't know what would work and what would not. So, after seeing all the ads for the teeth whitening strips, I bought some of them and started using them.

I used the strips every day for almost a month, just as the directions told me to. After seeing no visible changes I became frustrated and talked to my dentist. I should have done that to start with, but I didn't. Anyway, my dentist said that perhaps I should consider laser teeth whitening. Of course I had no clue as to what this was or what kind of procedure was involved. He explained to me that laser teeth whitening is a simple procedure whereby a gel is applied to your teeth and then activated through the use of a laser. The laser is the key to making the whole procedure work.

After talking with the dentist I decided to give the treatment a try. I scheduled an appointment and I must say everything went off without a hitch. The procedure was painless, very simple, and lasted no more than an hour. It is said that laser tooth whitening will increase the whiteness by up to 10 shades, and I believe it. I was very impressed with the results.

How long will the teeth whitening last? The dentist told me I can expect my teeth to stay as white as they are now for 2-3 years in my case. I say my case because I am such a big coffee drinker. There are other cases where it will last upwards of 7 years in certain instances. It all depends on what types of foods or beverages you consume or whether you smoke or not. Thanks to laser teeth whitening I can smile now and not worry about what my teeth look like anymore.

Read More

The Negatives of Teeth Whitening Products

What Teeth Whitening Products Don't Tell You About Their Product

Everybody loves to have sparkling white teeth and with today's advanced technology just about anybody can achieve it. But what most people don't know is the harmful effects and the lack of simplicity that is associated with many of the teeth whitening products on the market today that allows you to whiten your own teeth at home for a cheap price.

Teeth whitening being done by dental professionals was very popular in the 90's since it was the only option available when you wanted your teeth whitened. This changed when at home teeth whitening products began to pop up, claiming to whiten your teeth for $39.95 compared to the $500-$1,000 dental offices charge for the procedures. As companies bombard consumers with commercials emphasizing the simplicity of teeth whitening products you no longer think of the negatives sides of the products.

Brush on whitening is the most popular form of teeth whitening and why wouldn't it be, I mean it is the most simplistic sounding way to whiten your teeth. Brush on the teeth whitening gel, let it remain on your teeth overnight and wake up with a whole new bright smile in the morning, the concept sounds great, but it's not as simple of a task as you think it is.

When you brush the gel on your teeth at night, the only way it is going to work is if you allow it to stay on and dry overnight, but when most people sleep saliva is bound to touch the teeth either from drooling or from licking of teeth and when this happens you will rub parts of the gel off of your teeth, resulting in your teeth coming out blotchy somewhat like a poor paint job on a room or something. Another downside to brush on teeth whiteners is the ingredients in the products. If you read the ingredients of brush on teeth whiteners you'll notice that all of them contain alcohol. Alcohol doesn't sound bad right? But the fact is alcohol is bad for your breath.

Their purpose of adding alcohol to their products is to dry out the teeth whitening gel so that it sticks to your teeth at night, but it's not worth it at all when you consider the toll that the alcohol can take on your gums and your breath. Another harmful ingredient that most brush on teeth whiteners contain is glycerin, the effects of glycerin are even worse than alcohol. It extracts the moisture from your teeth. Glycerin is also one of the leading causes of tooth sensitivity caused by teeth whiteners. Brush on teeth whiteners sound good on paper, but they're harmful and non-effective.

Whitening strips is another very popular teeth whitening method, that lures people in by emphasizing the simplicity of their products which is: apply at night and wake up with a white smile. But just like brush on teeth whiteners, whitening strips has a lot of negative sides to it that needs to be taken under consideration before purchasing. The whitening strips come in a box with a upper strips and a lower strips, which are supposed to be pressed on the front of your teeth and worn overnight. This sounds simple right? But again it is not, because no one has flat teeth, every one has grooves between each tooth which makes the teeth anything but flat. If you only whiten the front of each tooth, but not between each tooth, your teeth will most likely end up looking much worse than when you began, because the color of the front of each tooth won't be the same as between each tooth.

Remember that teeth whitening products are not as simple to use as they appear to be and when visiting your local store ask clerks about which teeth whitening product will best suit you.

Read More