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How can I whiten my teeth?

TSE

TSE

macrumors 601
Original poster
Jun 25, 2007
4,077
3,725
St. Paul, Minnesota
Hey guys, I am 15, and I brush my teeth every day at night, but they are still extremely yellow for some reason. I use the expensive toothpaste, and brush for atleast 2 minutes each time.

Is there anyway I can make them whiter? I heard mixing hydrogen peroxide and baking soda together and brushing with that can whiten your teeth?
 
Ways I know:

1. Store-bought solutions (eg Crest white-strips)
2. Go to the Dentist. Most offer multiple solutions, ranging from a mould you wear with whitening gel inside (like an amped up #1), to a custom-fit version of said mould, to an in-house whitening procedure (one-time).

The Dentist options are pretty affordable for many budgets. IIRC, the in-house treatment would cost a few hundred dollars, and the mould(s) are around $50-$100 for a several month long supply.

File under FWIW.
 
I had the in the dentist's office whiting treatment when I was 16. My teeth came out extremely white. it was a $500 treatment, and I was given a custom fitted mouth piece with 16 tubes of a professional whitener gel (which work really well too).

I have been able to maintain the whiteness for 3 years, by cutting out all dark colas from my diet and using half a gel tube every three months.
 
Teeth color is genetical, very white teeth are mostly artificial.
Some things to avoid the yellowing of teeth is coke, coffe, black tea and such.

Answersing your question, the best way to make your teeth white is the laser treatment, though there is cheaper solutions, like the in-house solution, with a mould with whitening gel inside.

My girlfriend did the laser treatment, it tooks 1-2 hours to her teeth be very white. Here goes a picture, sorry for the bad quality, its from a Motorola Razr :mad:

zmmj
 
Brush your fronts with peroxide once a day. It'll take a week or two, but you'll notice a difference. Clean, safe (don't over do it, and don't ever swallow) and cheap.
 
Wowzera said:
Teeth color is genetical, very white teeth are mostly artificial.
Some things to avoid the yellowing of teeth is coke, coffe, black tea and such.
Click to expand...

I've been drinking 2-3 cans of coke every day for the last 2 years and my teeth haven't changed colour, and I still only brush them once a day. Maybe that also falls down to genetics?
 
I recommend Crest White Strips. I use a box around every August.

They've improved them a lot over the years. The first time I used them was when you had to do it twice a day for two weeks and my teeth and gums got pretty sore but now I buy the Premium strips and have no pain or sensitivity (maybe I'm used to it, who knows).
 
brush with sensodyne for about two weeks and then use some crest white strips....it works but without the sensodyne my mouth started hurting and teeth were really sensitive while using the strips
 
raggedjimmi said:
I've been drinking 2-3 cans of coke every day for the last 2 years and my teeth haven't changed colour, and I still only brush them once a day. Maybe that also falls down to genetics?
Click to expand...

I don't think so. Maybe luck! :D
But, are them white ? Or a little yellow ? If your teeth are already a bit yellow then wouldn't matter if you drink lot of coke or black tea, it won't be black, unless they are rotten :eek:
 
Crest white strips. Work like a charm. I drink coffee multiple times a day and the strips bring them back to pearly whites. No toothbrush ever required again. Just kidding, you still need to brush.
 
i used to just not use toothpaste as it left a really dry taste in my mouth afterwards which i hated (weird i know) but then my teeth were getting really yellow. then i just started to use it again and my teeth got really white like straight away!

also go to the dentist and get a routine teeth cleaning to scrape off all the 'calculus' in addition a checkup that left my teeth looking really white.
 
considering you are 15 and you say your teeth are yellow

it could be because of antibiotics and other medication you have taken when a child.

if that is the case then whitening is going to be challenging and your teeth may come out to be a grey-yellow shade not milky white.

best bet is to go to your dentist and ask him/her about whitening your teeth.
your only option may be veneers.

I personally use arm&hammer sensitive toothPASTE ( not gel). and MI- Paste with Recaldent after brushing at night. Nice clean looking and feeling white teeth and no cavities :p
 
I do the Crest White Strip thing too. It seems to work pretty well, especially given all the coffee I drink.
 
Well veneers may be a bit drastic, especially since you lose healthy tooth material. Unless your teeth are in bad shape and need crowns anyway, I wouldn't go changing tooth structure. Supposedly Sonicare helps whiten teeth. Although I thought I had heard (as someone else mentioned), that if your teeth are yellow from antibiotics, the traditional whitening methods don't work too well because it's not really the surface of the tooth that has yellowed. I think it's primarily from tetracycline if taken at a younger age.

I wouldn't use the hydrogen peroxide that comes in a brown bottle--I don't know that it is of the grade or quality that it's intended to go in your mouth, I would probably veer toward using a dental product that has peroxide in it already.

I assume you don't smoke, right?
 
According to the advice given by my dentist, don't bother with whitening toothpastes, they're a sham; avoid the whitening kiosks in the mall at all costs because they can be downright dangerous; give the crest whitestrip type products a try; if all else fails, have it done at the dentist clinic (around $300).

I gave the crest whitestrips a try, and they worked marginally well. I only used the upper strips at first so I would have a before and after comparison, and my top teeth were whiter, but not significantly.

I probably wouldn't bother with them again, however. If I want white teeth I'll go to the dentist.
 
Crest whitestrips are "okay"

The next step up is molded trays and what is basically bleach from the dentist. Not only do the trays work better and fit your teeth better, the chemical they give you to squirt in there is much stronger than crest strips.

The ultimate solution (not to mention quickest, and probably most dramatic) is laser whitening such as ZOOM!

I have done the first two options - and I am planning on doing the third prior to my wedding this fall. Downside is your teeth can be pretty sensitive after ZOOM! but even that has evolved (I think they are up to ZOOM! 3 now) to where its less of an issue apparently.
 
I used to use Crest WhiteStrips until i realised the effect is temporary, the best thing in my opinion is to buy some 35% Carbamide Peroxide gel from your dentist or another reputable seller, and a mouled mouth shield and use that for about 10 mins per day, after a week your teeth will be celebrity bleached, (literally paper white!!) but be careful because its very powerful stuff so over 10 mins will burn your gums.
 
Cromulent said:
You should brush your teeth twice a day really.
Click to expand...

And yet Fluoride is a poison. 2 grams may be enough to kill someone. Brushing one time a day is sometimes enough to exceed your safe daily intake rate, depending how well you brush and be careful. If you accidentally ingests it, you have exceed it. I know that from someone that actually got sick from water with fluoride in it that he was drinking in Alberta province (Canada).
 
Denchers FTW! :D

My grandpa wears denchers and his denchers are totally white, and he smokes! But his one real tooth is yellow...

lol
 
Ugh, so you mean you wake up and go about your day without brushing your teeth? Morning breath!! :confused:

Crest Whitestrips Advanced Seal work really, really well.
 
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