You can go to a dentist and get a variety of whitening treatments done, involving peroxides and/or bleaching, and the results will be quick, albeit expensive. If you want to save money and have results that really last in the long run, though, you will prefer natural teeth whitening remedies that you can do from your home. So, how does it work?
Natural teeth whitening is all about reinforcing the enamel of your teeth, as it is the quality and quantity of your tooth enamel that makes your teeth white in the first place. When your tooth enamel begins to break down, the secondary layer underneath of dentin, which is naturally yellow, will appear more and more as the enamel grows more translucent and see-through. Your tooth enamel is made up of nearly 100% mineral content, crystalline calcium phosphate to be exact. Teeth are one of the hardest surfaces in your body, but also subject to de-mineralization, when minerals can leech out of the teeth. Everyday your teeth are going through small re-mineralizations and de-mineralizations based mostly on your diet and dental hygiene, so chronic habits are the main factors shaping your teeth. One major consideration if you want to try some of the following suggestions is that the enamel can only become reinforced and whiten your teeth again when the nerve of your tooth is still intact – if the nerve has been removed, the tooth will not receive the nutrition necessary to whiten again naturally.
What are the main factors destroying your tooth enamel?
Acidity! Acidic foods are one of the major causes of so many health problems, it’s not even funny! Acids occur naturally in common foods like tomatoes, lemons, strawberries and other sour fruits, and are added to your sodas, among other things. In fact, phosphoric acid in particular is a common ingredient of many carbonated beverages and is also used by many dentists to etch your teeth before they put a new filling in your mouth! Columbia University did a famous study about a tooth that became like putty when submerged in Coca-cola for a few weeks. Acids like these are what erode and strip your teeth of enamel, and create weak spots on your teeth where they can penetrate further and rot your teeth from the inside out. Sugar is also highly acidic, so you’ll want to minimize sugar in your diet as well. Coffee not only stains your teeth, it’s also harmful because it is also highly acidic. Prolonged heavy illegal drug use is severely damaging to tooth enamel, as is prolonged vomiting such as in cases of people suffering from bulimia.
How do you turn your diet around so your teeth become whiter? You guessed it, alkalize yourself! The more alkaline diet you have, the more minerals you will naturally be absorbing, and the faster your teeth will be re-mineralized and whiten up! Vitamins supplements like Calcium, Vitamins D and K are also helpful, but the food you eat should also contain high amounts of these supplements naturally to really boost the ability of your body to absorb vitamins and minerals. Most alkalizing foods include leafy green vegetables, sweet fruits, unprocessed salts, to name a few.
To further promote natural teeth whitening, try other natural remedies that include rubbing cold-pressed sesame oil on your gums at night, which enhances tooth growth and ability to absorb nutrition. Castor oil has also been proven to be a very helpful supplement to support healthy teeth. Baking soda and salt are excellent ingredients for your toothpaste and also facilitate natural teeth whitening. Brushing and flossing regularly are also key because bacteria build up in your mouth also produces acids that erode your teeth.