Keeping your teeth white is not as easy as it sounds
. Your teeth are bombarded with chemicals, enzymes and staining agents every time you eat.
The following 5 steps will help to keep your smile clean and white.
Step 1
You need to develop the habit of brushing your teeth with toothpaste at least twice a day or preferably after each meal. Doing this regularly will help to reduce the build up of stains. The time taken to brush your teeth should be around 3 to 4 minutes. As well, as brushing your teeth you should also floss them as this will help to remove any pieces of food the toothbrush is likely to miss.
Step 2
Another way of helping to whiten your teeth is to use whitening toothpaste. These are heavily promoted and many brands are available. Before buying ensure the toothpaste is approved by the American Dental Association (ADA) and is clinically proven to whiten teeth. It is important to check this out because there are many whitening toothpaste products that have not been clinically tested. It is better not to use whitening toothpastes everyday because many of them can be abrasive and damage your teeth in the long term.
Step 3
Visit your dentist every 6 months for regular dental check-ups. Your dentist can advise you on work that needs to help improve the health of your teeth. This can involve dental cleaning to remove stains that have built up due to smoking, red wine and foods. If your teeth are stained due to discoloured pigments within the tooth then, ordinary dental cleaning will not be effective.
Step 4
For more severe discoloured teeth there is the option of bleaching. This type of treatment can be performed by your dentist. The treatment involves applying bleach to your teeth. Ultra violet light is used to trigger the bleach into bleaching the stains on the outer surface of the teeth. The number of treatments will depend on the severity of the staining and each treatment takes approximately 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Bleaching your teeth can also be carried out at home with home bleaching kits. The kit usually involves a plastic mouth guard. The mouth guard is filled with a bleaching gel and is fitted to your teeth. Depending on the level of staining the mouth guard may have to be worn for up to 2 hours per session. However, the ADA do not recommend using over the counter bleaching kits because the bleach can damage the gums.
Step 5
For teeth that are stained due to infection or disease may require more evasive procedures. One of these is using veneers. Veneers are synthetic shells that are applied to each affected tooth. To apply these veneers your real teeth may need to be filed down to ensure they fit correctly. This option is effective but expensive.