Since you’re staying inside and we’re limiting treatment to emergency care only, that means we can no longer help you brighten smiles with professional teeth whitening. However, that doesn’t mean we want you to suffer from stained teeth. In today’s blog, your Newhall, CA, dentist looks at what you can do to keep your smile bright from home.
How Do Stains Form?
A number of our daily habits could actually lead to serious cases of dental discoloration. For example, food high in sugar and starch leaves behind particles for bacteria to break down, creating plaque buildup that coats our teeth. Plaque not only increases the risk of tooth decay and gum disease, but could make discoloration more visible. In addition, beverages with tannins and dark pigments, like soda, tea, red wine, and coffee could make stains appear, as could smoking cigarettes or using other tobacco products. Lack of proper daily oral hygiene could also implement discoloration, such as poor brushing and flossing!
Keeping Them Away
To help prevent teeth stains, our team recommends starting each day by brushing teeth for two minutes, and then repairing this process before bed. You also need to floss thoroughly before going to sleep as well. Cut back on sugary drinks or those with tannins, and instead, drink more water, which contains no harmful sugars or acids, no tannins, and helps rinse and cleanse your smile. Enjoy healthier snack options, like fresh fruit and veggies, in lieu of sugary or starchy favorites like candy or chips. Avoid all tobacco products too! This not only fights teeth stains, but lowers your cancer risk as well.
The Different Between OTC and Professional Teeth Whitening
Many store-bought options, such as strips or whitening toothpastes, could offer minor results, but they don’t last very long and tooth sensitivity is common. However, we have a professional system that could brighten teeth by several shades and then help prevent sensitive teeth as well! We start with an initial office treatment, before sending you home with a set of custom plastic trays and a bleaching gel. You then wear the gel-filled trays for about 30 to 45 minutes a day over a period of a week to ten days to see optimal results. You can even keep the trays and any leftover gel for touch-ups down the road. If you have any questions about our teeth whitening systems or how to keep teeth bright from home, then contact our team today.
Do You Have Questions About Keeping Teeth Bright?
We want to make sure you have the information necessary to protect your smile while staying indoors. To learn more about keeping serious discoloration at bay, then please schedule a consultation by calling Newhall Dental Arts in Newhall, CA, today at (661) 259-7760.