Word of Mouth
October 1, 2004
Whitening Toothpaste

Just about everyone would love to have whiter teeth if they could. In recent years tooth whitening has become cheaper and more accessible, with options such as bleaching and whitening toothpaste.



Stains can be caused by foods,

wine, tea, coffee or smoking. {{more}}



Staining due to foods and smoking are obvious, often appearing brown in colour on the surfaces of your teeth.

The use of whitening toothpaste can remove and prevent these stains from building up; these toothpastes can be thought of as “carwashes” for your teeth. In the same way that a good car washing removes the dirt on your car to make it sparkle, whitening toothpaste remove stains from your teeth so that your smile shines through.

Many whitening toothpastes use harsh abrasives to clean teeth. Unfortunately, over long periods of repeated use, these harsh abrasives begin to remove tooth enamel making teeth appear yellow and causing them to become sensitive to cold or heat.

It should be remembered that whitening toothpaste just removes stains; they do not whiten your teeth beyond your natural tooth colour. That is to say that if your teeth are naturally yellow, it is not realistic to obtain teeth that are as white as a sheet of white paper.

However, the following stains cannot be removed by whitening toothpaste:

Stains that are caused by changes in temperatures of food and drinks that allow the teeth to expand and contract and stains to penetrate the teeth.

Foods that are slightly acidic opening up pores of the enamel and allowing stains to move in.

Teeth that darken with age because the staining factors act upon the teeth for a longer period of time.

Staining due to medications such as tetracycline.

To remove these stains or whiten your natural tooth colour, bleaching by a dental professional would be your best option.



Dental Care

Tel: 456-2125