The presence of a snow-white smile in our time is not only an indicator of healthy teeth in humans, but also a sign of prosperity and well-being.

Today, any dental clinic is ready to offer its customers the creation of a Hollywood smile.

Teeth whitening is one of the most popular procedures in dentistry.

It’s better, of course, to carry out teeth whitening in a clinic, but we are well aware that you can effectively make your teeth white and on your own.

To whiten teeth at home without harm to the enamel, you still have to visit the dentist, if only for the specialist to determine the structure of tooth enamel and give his recommendations regarding a bleaching agent.

It is important to know that the true color of teeth is determined by genetics and is individual for each person.

Contrary to the popular belief that the whiter the teeth, the more strong and healthy they are, dentists say the opposite. The yellowness of the teeth indicates a sufficient amount of calcium.

Why teeth turn yellow

Reasons that can cause discoloration of tooth enamel:

• A natural factor, like the aging process, can serve as one of the causes of darkening of enamel.
• Inadequate hygiene of the teeth, as a result of the accumulation of plaque, the natural color of the enamel is blocked.
• With caries, the hard tissues of the tooth are demineralized, which causes the appearance of spots on the enamel, which first have a light color, and then become dark. If caries spreads under the filling, then the color of the tooth also changes.
• Since cigarettes contain nicotine, smoking is one of the causes of yellow teeth. In smokers, as a result of exposure to nicotine and tarry substances contained in tobacco smoke, yellow teeth gradually acquire a dirty brown hue.
• Food colorings influence the shade of enamel. With frequent use of tea, coffee, infusions of herbs, wine, berries, darkening of the teeth can be observed.
• A tooth injury can lead to a change in the shade of enamel. In case of damage to the neurovascular bundle, blood enters the cavity of the tooth, which leads to its darkening.
• As a result of taking certain medications, for example, tetracycline.
• When used in endodontic treatment of obsolete filling materials. As part of the filling materials produced ten years ago, there were components that contributed to the darkening of the teeth. A filling material such as silver amalgam, which is widely used in the USA, Israel and other countries, causes blackening of the teeth.
• With an excess of fluoride in drinking water, the disease fluorosis occurs, which leads to the appearance of stains on tooth enamel.
• A change in the color of the teeth may be due to the presence of a systemic disease or be hereditary.

How to bleach

There are several ways to whiten teeth at home.

• One of the easiest ways to whiten your teeth at home is to use a special toothpaste, which can be purchased at a pharmacy.
• But its use cannot be considered safe.

Dentists do not recommend using whitening pastes for longer than one month per year.

Home Whitening Recipes

To create a Hollywood smile, you can use gentle whitening with oils (olive, tea tree oil), berries and fruits.

Whitening is considered more aggressive when activated carbon, apple cider vinegar, sea salt, hydrogen peroxide, wood ash, and soda are used.

Toothpaste with a whitening effect can be prepared independently at home.

To make it, you will need:

• A teaspoon of soda.
• Mint.
• One chicken egg protein.
• A teaspoon of milk.

All components must be thoroughly mixed, the whitening paste is ready. Then brush your teeth for three to four minutes.

Application of oils

• After brushing your teeth, olive and tea tree oil is applied to the toothbrush in the amount of two to three drops and the procedure is repeated.
• The oil can be mixed in addition with orange oil and lemon juice.

This method is absolutely safe for enamel, so even a child can use it.

The best effect is observed when using tea tree oil.

Whitening teeth with soda

This method of teeth whitening has been used since ancient times. Baking soda has an excellent abrasive effect, in addition - it is a strong alkali. Due to these properties, enamel acquires whiteness.

To obtain the desired result, the toothbrush is dipped in soda or a pre-prepared solution and brush your teeth. The result is noticeable after the first application.

But, this procedure is not recommended to be carried out often (at most once a month) for the reason that soda thins enamel and has an irritating effect on the gum mucosa.

Video: “Teeth Whitening Soda”

The use of salt in bleaching

Salt, like soda, has a strong abrasive effect, but it is a rather coarse product, because it removes the top layer of tooth enamel.

• Therefore, salt should be used very carefully.
• Abuse of teeth whitening with salt leads to irreparable consequences.

The use of hydrogen peroxide

Teeth whitening with peroxide is one of the popular and cheap methods, but it is quite dangerous.

Hydrogen peroxide, getting into the oral cavity, releases active oxygen, whose ions interact with all tissues.

When using concentrated peroxide, burns of the oral mucosa can be obtained, and teeth in general may lose enamel.

If you use hydrogen peroxide correctly, you can undoubtedly get an excellent effect.

Ways to use:

• After brushing your teeth, you can rinse your mouth with 3% peroxide and then with warm water to remove its residues.
• Using a cotton swab or stick soaked in a peroxide solution, rub your teeth and rinse your mouth with water.

The procedure is not recommended more often than twice a month.

Lemon juice whitening

• Lemon juice has the same effect as peroxide, but its effect is more gentle.
• Lemon can be used to whiten teeth more often.

Berry application

Berries such as strawberries and strawberries contain a lot of fruit acids, which can also be successfully used to whiten teeth.

Mode of application:

Grate the berries and apply on the teeth with rubbing movements.Then, using a toothbrush with paste, remove the remaining berries.

This method of whitening is quite safe, so it can be used not only by an adult, but also by a teenager.

Ash use

This method has been used by people since time immemorial.

• Potassium hydroxide, which is a lot in the ash, is able to quickly remove plaque from the teeth, even in hard to reach areas.
• In order to make the teeth snow-white, just add a little ash to the toothpaste and, as usual, brush your teeth.

But to abuse this method is not recommended, since enamel can be severely damaged.

Pharmacy products

Those who do not trust folk methods can whiten their teeth on their own with the help of pharmacy products.

To whiten teeth at home, mouth guards, strips, and pencil can be used.

• When using these products, a special gel is used that contains hydrogen peroxide.
• Whitening pencils benefit in terms of convenience. But judging by the reviews, they are less effective.
• Strips are more aggressive and, before using them, you need to make sure that there are no contraindications to their use.
• The use of mouthguards can be considered a semi-domestic whitening method, since the procedure is carried out with the participation of a dentist.

Whitening with the use of cap occurs in several stages:

• Using a special scale of shades, the specialist determines the level of whiteness of the patient's teeth.
• The patient receives a syringe with gel in his hands and an impression is taken from the teeth, according to which a mouth guard will be made or a mouth guard will be bought at a pharmacy. You will need to wear such a device for an hour or more, depending on the solution.

The results do not appear immediately, but after a couple of weeks. The effect after the procedure lasts for a year or a year and a half.

Complications

When whitening teeth on their own with alternative methods, the following complications may occur:

• Inflammatory processes of the oral mucosa.
• Increasing the sensitivity of teeth to temperature (cold, hot) and taste (sweet) of food.
• Inflammation of the interdental gingival papillae.
• Thinning and destruction of enamel.

Reviews

• Used a white light system for teeth whitening. The effect did not appear immediately, but only after the fifth procedure. As a result, dark spots disappeared, teeth became lighter. The effect of the procedures did not affect the sensitivity of the teeth.
• For a long time I wanted to whiten my teeth, but did not find the opportunity to visit the dentist. I decided to use folk recipes, because I wanted the effect to be immediately decided to use hydrogen peroxide. After the first procedure, the teeth turned white.
• I used whitening toothpaste for a month. As a result, I did not observe any whitening effect. After applying the paste, the gums inflamed.

Video: “Criteria for quality teeth whitening”