DIY Teeth Whitening Trends: Fact Or Fiction?

Trends impact just about every aspect of life, from slang and fashion to which toys are collectibles this year and which fad diet everyone’s aunt is doing.

Most trends are harmless symptoms of an ever-evolving society and culture, but when they affect the ways we take care of ourselves, they can become serious. In recent years, do-it-yourself teeth whitening has been a “trendy” topic, so let’s take a look at a few of the more popular methods.

Charcoal Versus Tooth Enamel

As counterintuitive as it seems to rub black powder on your teeth and expect them to become whiter, the rationale behind the idea makes sense. Charcoal is extremely porous and absorbent, and has been used even in hospitals to safely neutralize toxins. In theory, it could do the same for your teeth. However, charcoal isn’t just porous, it’s also abrasive. Even as it absorbs harmful compounds from your mouth and disrupts bacterial populations, it could also be scraping away your enamel, doing more harm than good. Until we know more about the effects of charcoal on teeth, it’s safer to give that home remedy a pass.

Lemon Juice: Dissolving Stains Or Dissolving Teeth?

The enamel on your teeth is the hardest substance in your body, but it is extremely susceptible to erosion by acid. Your saliva keeps the pH in your mouth balanced to protect your enamel, but any time you eat or drink something acidic, that pH is disrupted and your teeth are vulnerable. Using lemon juice on your teeth in hopes of whitening them is, therefore, likely to cause a lot of enamel erosion, and once that enamel is gone, it’s gone for good.

Oil Pulling: An Ancient Folk Remedy

Oil pulling involves swishing oil (typically coconut, sunflower, sesame, or olive oil) around in one’s mouth for up to twenty minutes. Proponents of oil pulling claim it has numerous health benefits, including teeth whitening, but the American Dental association doesn’t recommend it because there is no scientific evidence to back up these claims.

Strawberries And Bananas

Strawberries do contain some citric acid, but they also contain malic acid (particularly when ripe), which actually can give your teeth a whiter appearance. Bananas contain potassium, magnesium, and manganese, all of which promote healthier teeth and can help remove surface stains. So these two do-it-yourself teeth whiteners may actually provide some benefit! Both fruits still contain sugar, however, so you should still brush your teeth with dentist approved toothpaste after eating them. Curious about those whitening mouthpieces that emit blue light you see all over social media? Watch the video below to learn whether or not they’re really effective:

Video Transcript

chances are you’ve seen pictures like these depicting celebrities holding a blue light mouthpiece and claiming it’s responsible for those beautiful pearly whites but what is the real deal cosmetic dentist Dr Sako joins us to shed some light on this very important topic because light yeah indeed now we’ve all seen those posts on social media that we just saw right now on the camera with that blue light does it work does the light actually whiten your teeth Ah that’s questionable it’s

usually coupled with some kind of a peroxide whether it’s a gel or a pen and that peroxide is actually what’s doing the whitening and that’s so what is chemical reaction that the light is activating the hydrogen Pro again it’s debatable if the light is actually activating it or it’s just something for fun to pose with on Instagram again it’s a nice thing to pose with it’s fun well when you I’ve had these done in my dentist’s office and they do put they do put you under a light well now we have

this that’s different it’s different because we have something that’s plugged in with a lot of power and that has a lot of it’s ultraviolet light these are little LED lights I don’t know the actual science behind the difference but does this truly actually whiten your teeth the light does emit a little bit of heat and that heat will dry your teeth and when your teeth are dry they actually look a little lighter and that affect glass for a couple of hours even a couple of days so instantly it really

looks is that good for your for your an enamel well no over a long period of time not even over a long period of time just instantly when you’re enamel is dry you have pores in your teeth those open up a little bit and when those pores open up they’re a lot more SU suceptible to things like Decay or staining even sometimes

now what about people with veneers because a lot of people do have veneers either for cosmetic reasons or because you know that a tooth has been damaged can the can whitening over the- counter whitening do anything for those

great question now again with veneers some people have bondings things like that on their front teeth those will not whiten so if your other teeth whiten those stay the same you’re going to have one tooth that’s going to stand out it’s going to look a little funny so that’s why you have to be careful right you got to be careful I mean the key Point here is make sure you consult your dentist anytime before using some kind of a peroxide product like this

what is the best way to get a white smile

well I mean you know everyone drinks coffee and that’s one of the one number one staining things usually if you have a cup maybe try to rinse with water right afterwards to avoid the staining from seating it really does make a big difference

you drink coffee

I don’t

you know Dr Sako I used to like you but now it’s all over between us

so anytime you eat something that’s Darkly colored like that rinse your mouth out with some water rinse your mouth out with some

water there’s chewing gum there’s overthe counter whitening toothpaste those are abrasive so they’ll take away the superficial stains on your teeth and then I was going to ask you because before we run out of time you’re big on being very careful about all the promotional items out there that slubs are pushing

yes you always want to kind of rethink something uh do your research and again the best take-home key here is um ask your dentist just consult with your dentist if you have a product take it over to your dentist ask them what they think and if they give you the green light go for it it’s the smartest thing to do especially if you have like you said veneers or something along those lines Dr Sako thank you sir

Stick To The Science

Trends like charcoal toothpaste and lemon juice mouthwash will come and (hopefully) go, and occasionally we’ll discover remedies that do have benefits, like strawberries and bananas, but the best benefits to our teeth will always come from dentist-approved methods. Brush your teeth twice a day for two minutes and floss once a day, avoid sugary drinks and snacks, and schedule regular dental appointments. If all of these good habits aren’t keeping your teeth white enough, talk to us about safe, professional whitening options.

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