Teeth Whitening at Home

"A smile is a curve that sets everything straight." - Phyllis Diller, American comedienne

With growing age, teeth get stained due to number of reasons, like smoking, tobacco chewing, coffee, tea, soda, etc. Certain medications and genetic factors can also cause teeth staining. Even regular care of teeth cannot prevent teeth from getting stained. Getting tooth whitened with professional help is expensive and one cannot afford it always. Before moving on to know more about teeth whitening at home, let us know the causes of teeth staining properly.

Causes of Teeth Staining
As discussed earlier, there are a number of factors that lead to staining of teeth. These causes are as given below.

Growing Age
As we grow old, the teeth enamel undergoes wear and tear and teeth become dull. The enamel layer becomes thin and exposes the inner dentin of teeth that is yellow in color.

Smoking/Tobacco
Smoking or chewing tobacco, stain teeth within no time. The nicotine present in tobacco is the main factor that causes teeth staining. Teeth being porous absorb nicotine and get stained.

Coffee/Tea
Beverages like tea and coffee that are dark in color can cause discoloration of teeth. Even aerated drinks like soda can stain teeth, if one does not rinse one's mouth after drinking them.

Poor Dental Care
Poor dental hygiene is also one of the important reasons that cause teeth staining. Irregular brushing and flossing of teeth builds plaque on the surface.

Medications
Some medicines contain certain chemicals that cause teeth to stain. If one is under such medication, he/she should consult a dentist to avoid teeth staining due to these medications.

How to Whiten Teeth at Home
There are plenty of home remedies that can be used for tooth whitening. Tooth (teeth) whitening is nothing but teeth bleaching. Let us discuss the teeth whitening at home techniques at length.

Hydrogen Peroxide
This one of most popular, economic and effective ways of teeth whitening at home. Every teeth whitening kit has hydrogen peroxide, as one of its ingredients. It can be used solely or along with baking soda. You will easily get the hydrogen peroxide solution at all drug stores. Hydrogen peroxide teeth whitening can leave a bit of a burning sensation in the gums that goes away after some time. It is a harmful, corrosive chemical and hence, should not be swallowed. Many dentists prefer teeth whitening using hydrogen peroxide.

Baking Soda
It is one of the teeth whiteners that not only whitens but also cleans teeth. It has been used since centuries for whitening teeth, even before the invention of toothpastes. All you have to do is take a bit of baking soda and prepare a paste by putting some water and pinch of salt in it. Brush your teeth with this paste in a normal manner. After brushing, rinse your mouth properly, to remove all the baking soda out of the mouth. Baking soda is safer than hydrogen peroxide. Do not brush with this paste regularly, but only twice a week.

Besides hydrogen peroxide and baking soda method, there are some natural ways to whiten teeth. Certain fruits have the ability to whiten teeth naturally and they act as excellent teeth whiteners. Let us see how to whiten teeth naturally.

Strawberry
Strawberries contain natural whitening agents and is one of the popular home remedies for teeth whitening. Rub strawberry on your teeth or make a paste out of strawberry. It is necessary to brush your teeth immediately with toothpaste after rubbing strawberry, because it contains acids and sugars that can harm your teeth.

Bay Leaves and Orange Peel
The mixture of bay leaves and orange peel is also one of the teeth whitening at home methods. Dry the orange peel and powder the bay leaves properly. Apply this mixture on your teeth, to make them whiter.

Vegetables
Few vegetables like cucumbers, broccoli, celery and carrots are natural whiteners. You can get rid of teeth stains by eating these vegetables.

Wood ash is also one of the home remedies for teeth whitening; but this causes the enamel to become thinner and one should not use it as a teeth whitening method.

Regular brushing after meals can help reduce the stains on teeth. Quit smoking and frequent drinking of beverages that cause teeth staining. However, if you have teeth stains and want to get rid of them, use the above mentioned teeth whitening at home techniques and improve your smile.