Hey everyone,
As all my faithful followers know - I've been working on getting my teeth whitter. I tend to smile with my mouth closed because I don't like my slightly off-white teeth. This Mona Lisa smile makes me look kind of timid or mischievous in photos.
When I visit the dentist for my bi-annual cleanings, the dental hygienists sand blast my teeth with baking soda. I have asked the dentist if they can do anything more drastic but he has recommended that I don't do anything else since my enamel is already thin. Apparently I grind my teeth while I sleep - I have been given a night guard to wear but I recently stopped wearing it because I don't like the idea of putting plastic in my hot mouth. I believe the heat from my body must slowly break down the plastic and I don't want plastic accumulating in my body. On top of this, the night guard was uncomfortable and my boyfriend doesn't think I grind my teeth since he has never heard anything. I assume I must have done this before when I was a stressed out University student. Now my life is relatively free and easy - I am not being sarcastic.
Last night I brushed by teeth with baking soda, then I dipped my toothbrush in 3% hydrogen peroxide and brushed the front of my teeth and later on I brushed my teeth with a regular toothpaste containing fluoride. I intend to do this about once a week. This morning I noticed my teeth are definitely whitter than usual.
I heard about using regular hydrogen peroxide to whiten teeth from a blog of a woman who was using baking soda instead of regular toothpaste.
I think the hydrogen peroxide was effective and a much more affordable solution than buying white strips or fancy mouth wash. But I am not sure it is healthier than alternate solutions. The European Union only allows hydrogen peroxide concentrations of up to 0.1% to be sold over the counter. Although hydrogen peroxide is a normal product of metabolism and is found in the body - studies have shown that it can aggravate the risk of cancer caused by smoking. The British Dental Journal suggests refraining from using hydrogen peroxide without gum protection given its tumor promoting effects.
Other studies have suggested that hydrogen peroxide can wear down the enamel of your teeth. However, most of the research I have come across has suggested that, overall, hydrogen peroxide is safe.
I'm really looking forward to my next dentist appointment. I think I won't say anything until the hygienist gives me her initial thoughts. Then I will have quite a few questions for the dentist:
- Is hydrogen peroxide safe to use on a weekly basis given that I do not smoke?
- Does baking soda wear down my enamel?
- Is sea salt or baking soda better for my teeth?
A friend told me that the no toothpaste method can cause little black dots to appear on my teeth. I have been on the lookout for these black dots - which apparently go away once you use a regular toothpaste.
I guess I'm not really comfortable giving any concrete advice yet with respect to dental hygiene. I would definitely not use anything containing hydrogen peroxide if you are a smoker and I would refrain from using a hydrogen peroxide whitener often. I don't think the crest strips or bleaching trays are safer than just dipping the toothbrush in a hydrogen peroxide solution.
I would say that my teeth feel a little bit more sensitive today so - I think I'll probably only use this method once a month. Until my next encounter with peroxide - I think I will try a couple of other methods. Sunday will be the day when I experiment.
1) I will mash a fresh strawberry and apply it to my teeth using a toothbrush or finger to brush my teeth.
2) I will dip my toothbrush in apple cider vinegar. Apparently this is a great way to remove tartar without damaging your enamel.
3) I will rub the inside of an orange peel onto my teeth.
Let me know if you have any other low-cost home recipes for beautiful teeth. Free yourself!
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