Keeping your pearly whites looking their best can make a big difference to your overall appearance and your personal confidence. Over the years we’ve seen a huge rise in toothpastes with whitening formulations and requests for teeth whitening procedures. But, did you know that there’s an easy way to help yourself when it comes to beautiful bright white teeth? All you need to do is ensure you have a good dental hygiene routine and avoid those foodie culprits that are known to stain your teeth.
The biggest offenders are those intensely coloured foods and drinks that cause havoc with your clothes and tablecloths should a spillage occur – let alone your teeth! Red wine, tea, coffee, berries and sauces (soy, tomato-based and curries) all fit into this category. So if you’re enjoying a few brews throughout the day and a glass of red wine each night with your dinner, you’re probably not doing your pearly whites any favours! While herbal, green and white teas are less likely to stain teeth than black tea, unfortunately white wine still has teeth staining properties that can make an impact on your teeth in the long term.
Foods and drinks with high acidity also encourage the discoloration process. They do this by eroding the dental enamel, which temporarily softens the teeth, making it easier for colours from food and drink to latch on. Cola and sports drinks are two of the biggest offenders when it comes to acidic beverages – so we highly recommend limiting your intake of these and if possible avoiding them completely.
We all know tobacco isn’t good for your overall dental health, but it also is a major cause of tooth discolouration. The nicotine and tar are both responsible for the yellow/brown tinge left on your teeth. Of course tooth stains are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to mouth health and smoking. You’re also at risk of gum disease, tooth loss, and more seriously, mouth cancer.
Keeping your pearly whites bright doesn’t have to be a hardship though. If you really can’t do without those stain promoting food and drinks there are steps you can take to minimise the impact they have on your teeth:
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Posted on: 13th Nov, 2014
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