Problem: I would so love to have a perfect
white smile. I hate my yellowing, stained teeth. What
should I do?
Solution: There are many reasons why
someone may have yellow or stained teeth. Silver fillings
might have grayed the surrounding tooth enamel, so changing
those for the new tooth-colored material dentists use
can make a world of difference. Foods like coffee, tea,
and berries can cause stains. You can cut back on the
foods causing the problem, but who wants to give up their
coffee in the morning, much less fresh berries? And, unfortunately,
some people just have natural yellow-colored teeth. Serious
staining and discoloration (natural or otherwise) cannot
be corrected with toothpaste, but products like Colgate
Total Plus Whitening Toothpaste are as good a place to
start as any. (Source: Journal of Clinical Dentistry,
2002, volume 13, number, pages 91–94).
Abrasive toothpaste can also be a problem because over
time the abrasives help erode the surface of the tooth,
and that can further the yellowing. The external part
of the tooth is white, but underneath the white enamel
is a yellow dentin core. The white part erodes, in part
because of age, and the erosion is just sped up by hard
toothbrushes or abrasive toothpaste.
For startling results that can make teeth whiter than
you ever thought possible, one solution is to ask your
dentist to bleach your teeth. Teeth-bleaching treatments
used by dentists come in two forms, one you use at home
and the other that is done at the dentist's office. The
process done at the office can take several weeks, at
about a half-hour per visit, for a cost of $300 to $800.
The kit you buy from a dentist and take home uses a similar
carbamide peroxide–based bleaching gel. Your dentist will
fit a mouth guard to your mouth, and it must be left on
for several hours over several nights. These at-home kits
can cost between $100 and $200. The whitening effect can
last up to 47 months in 82% of the patients who use it
with no adverse side effects (Source: Journal of Esthetic
and Restorative Dentistry, 2001, volume 13, number 6,
pages 357–369). One major drawback of this process is
increasing and even painful gum sensitivity.
The teeth-whitening kits you buy at the drugstore ($15
to $25) use a much weaker peroxide-based bleach and the
mouth guard is not specially fitted to your mouth. If
your teeth are even that is fine, but if they aren't the
mouth guard will not fit evenly and you can get uneven
results. The mouth guard the dentist has made for your
mouth has individual spaces for each tooth. If the teeth
do not lighten evenly you can do extra treatments for
the teeth that didn't become light enough.
Bleaching or whitening strips were created to eliminate
the problems associated with having to use mouth guards
and a bleaching solution (not everyone is comfortable
wearing a mouth guard). Whitening strips are available
either over-the-counter or from your dentist. Both types
of whitening strips use hydrogen peroxide to whiten teeth.
The strips that are available from your dentist use a
stronger concentration of hydrogen peroxide than those
available at the drugstore. Both types of whitening strips
can be very effective when applied twice daily for 14
days, yielding a highly significant improvement in tooth
color versus baseline (Source: Compendium of Continuing
Education in Dentistry, June 2000, Supplement, pages S22–S28).
Drugstore versions will require more applications to net
the same results as those from the dentist. Regardless
of your choice there are definite drawbacks to these strips.
They can leave a yellow area on the teeth near the gumline.
Whitening strips also are limited because they can only
cover the front teeth, which means only those will be
lightened, leaving all the other teeth unaffected. Perhaps
most discouraging is that whitening strips have a short
shelf-life. This is because whitening strips use hydrogen
peroxide as the active agent, and it is an exceptionally
unstable ingredient. It can happen that by the time you
find, buy, and start using your whitening strips the hydrogen
peroxide may have become inactive. The teeth-whitening
kits available through dentists have mouth guards that
use carbamide peroxide, which is far more stable than
hydrogen peroxide and has a very long shelf life.
It is important to keep in mind that none of these treatments
is very effective if your teeth are grayed rather than
yellowed, or if they are completely yellowed. Teeth-bleaching
systems work best for partially yellow or food-stained
teeth.
Other than bleaching, if the yellow or dull color of
your teeth is from tartar buildup, get your teeth cleaned,
and have them cleaned regularly. If you can, avoid foods
that can grab onto teeth and make them look darker, such
as chocolate, dark-colored berries, red wine, and coffee.
Milk can also bond onto front teeth and cause a yellow
tartar buildup. Clearly, it would be best to brush immediately
after eating these foods, but if that isn't possible,
rinse your mouth well with water and then chew sugarless
gum. Many dentists recommend using the Sonicare automatic
toothbrush to prevent tartar or plaque buildup. You definitely
cannot manually brush your teeth as well as the Sonicare
can, and it is a worthwhile option to check out.