Occasionally, one hears something that seems just too good — or easy — to be true. Here’s an example. An article in USA Today entitled “Green beans: The new tooth whitener?” once included the following line: “There’s an easier, cheaper and natural alternative (to tooth whitening): the right diet.” Is it true? Can you eat your way to whiter teeth with green beans or otherwise?
Practically speaking, you can’t eat your way to whiter teeth
You can practically follow no diet that will make your teeth whiter than they are now. Should you eat more fruits and vegetables? Yes, a diet that features lots of apples, cauliflower, celery, oranges, strawberries, and oranges will boost your nutrition, but it won’t change your discoloured teeth for the better.
The diet-related problem contributing to our stained and discoloured teeth differs from what foods we are missing. It’s what foods we are eating. Too many foods and beverages we eat and drink are too potently coloured to keep our teeth white. If your goal is to get whiter teeth than the yellowish and greyish teeth you have Today, cauliflower won’t get you there. No diet will. At this point, it’s too late. For diet changes anyway.
Here’s where diet matters. To keep your teeth from becoming stained in easily avoidable ways, there is a short list of foods and drinks that you should eliminate from your diet or, more realistically, moderate within your diet or, even more reasonably still, only eat or drink if you’re ready to brush your teeth well immediately after consumption:
- Red wine
- Sodas
- Tomato-based sauces
- Soy sauce
- Curries
- Blueberries
- Coffee, tea, and sports drinks
All those foods and drinks — plus another enormous culprit in nicotine and tar from smoking — quickly stain your teeth unless you brush your teeth thoroughly immediately after consuming. To keep your teeth whiter, you should carefully manage your intake of those foods and beverages.
There is a wrinkle to the notion that your diet won’t get your teeth whiter. The wrinkle is that eating well by consuming lots of fresh fruits and vegetables will: boost the ability of your teeth to resist stains and discolouration; and help you to resist infection in the form of tooth decay and gum disease that can change the colour of your teeth. Still, those diet changes are preventative, and no diet will whiten teeth already stained.
So how can you whiten your teeth?
You have a wide variety of options for teeth whitening in NW Calgary. Some can even be found at the grocery store, not in the grocery aisles. In the pharmacy section, you’ll find whitening strips, gels, rinses, and gums that promise to remove stains from your teeth and make them whiter. Many people have achieved whitening results using those products on their own and at home over some time.
For better results, get a dentist near you on your side. The fastest, most effective, safest, and most long-lasting way to achieve teeth whitening near you is to have your teeth cleaned and whitened in your dentist’s office by your dentist. Your dentist will apply bleaching compounds far stronger than those available in DIY kits to the precise type of stains on the specifically affected teeth in your jaw. In just an hour, you may be able to achieve much whiter and brighter teeth that will stay that way much longer.
And on your way home, stop at the grocery store to load up on fruits and vegetables. After all, your grocer can help you keep your teeth white, but your dentist is your best ally and resource for teeth whitening near you.