It’s hard to ignore how you feel about your teeth when you see them every time you look in the mirror. If you’re unhappy with how they look, it can be especially frustrating and disheartening. Discoloration and stains are one of the most popular complaints surrounding smiles all over the nation. The best way to prevent this from happening is to know what causes it.
Surface Stains
Stains on the teeth can be caused by a huge range of external influences. Smoking is the most well-known, but many food and drink choices can leave undesirable discoloration on the surface of the teeth. Coffee, soda, and wine come to mind first. However, many people are surprised to find out tomatoes, curry, berries and even balsamic vinaigrette can be to blame for these stains as well.
Enamel and Dentin
When enamel (or surface of the tooth) is thin, more dentin shows through your teeth. Dentin is one of the main parts of a tooth. It’s protected by the enamel, and everyone’s is a shade of yellow. It ranges from person to person on how yellow, but as the enamel thins or if it’s already thin it can cause your teeth to appear more yellow. The natural aging process plays a big role in the thinning of enamel as well.
Antibiotics
Sometimes the effect of antibiotics on your teeth happen while still in the womb. The National Institute of Health suggests that children that take antibiotics before the age of 8 and those whose mother’s took antibiotics later during pregnancy are at risk for having permanent discoloring that affects their adult teeth.
The best course of action to keep teeth looking their best is to maintain a daily oral health care routine and to have professional cleanings every six months. If you just can’t say no to the foods and drinks that are the worst in relation to staining, rinse your mouth out with water after consuming them to minimize the potential risk. If you feel like it’s too late and your teeth just aren’t where you want them to be, call our office at 858-866-9692 and schedule an in-office professional teeth whitening for the best results. You can also visit our teeth whitening page here.
