Are you frustrated by naturally yellow teeth and wondering if there’s a way to make them appear whiter?

I can tell you from experience that there’s no magic formula. Nor will you ever get dazzling, Hollywood-esque results without expensive crowns or veneers.

But if you’re a typical male, all you really need are teeth that are clean and presentable: according to research, a man smiles on average only eight times a day compared to a woman’s 62.

Besides, filing down perfectly healthy teeth in order to fit crowns or veneers is surely sacrilege.

That’s why I chose the less invasive option of bleaching and repairing, which also proved more affordable.

In this post, I’ll tell you how I did it and how I manage to maintain my brighter (albeit rare) smile.

Why Are Your Teeth Naturally Yellow?

But first, let’s take a look at why your teeth are yellow instead of white.

There are two types of tooth discoloration: extrinsic and intrinsic.

Extrinsic Discoloration

Extrinsic discoloration occurs in the surface of the tooth through external factors like food, drink, and tobacco.

I smoked cigarettes for 29 years. By the time I quit in 2012, I was on 60 to 80 a day. It left stains so stubborn that no amount of professional cleaning or twice-daily scrubbing would budge them.

And I enjoyed endless cups of coffee. Luckily, I recently discovered a simple way of consuming high-tannin beverages without staining, but more on that later.

I also like yellow curries, tomato-based sauces, beets, dark chocolate, and berries, all of which can darken teeth over time. There are, however, ways to prevent this.

Intrinsic Discoloration

This is what is meant by “naturally” yellow teeth.

Intrinsic discoloration occurs within the tooth as a result of genetics or medication. If this is the reason your teeth are yellow, whitening will be more difficult.

My adult teeth were yellow from the moment they came through, in spite of my entire family having perfectly white teeth.

I therefore believe the antibiotic tetracycline was to blame. Yellow in color, it binds to calcium, which is essential to tooth development. For this reason, tetracycline-class antibiotics are no longer prescribed for pregnant women or children below the age of eight.

I hadn’t heard of this until recently, so it’s too late to find out if my mother took tetracycline while pregnant or if I took it as a small child.

Aging

A further cause of yellowing teeth is age.

Due to wear and tear, tooth enamel becomes thinner and more transparent, allowing dentin, which is yellow, to shimmer through.

Perhaps this is why I’ve not succeeded in getting my teeth up to a dazzling white, but a bigger problem for me is receding gums, which expose dentin.

Apart from being yellow, dentin is more prone to staining than enamel. As a result, the tops of my upper front teeth were turning brown.

Source: Pixabay

How I Made My Yellow Teeth Look Whiter

Convinced that my teeth were beyond repair and fed up with keeping my mouth shut, I toyed with the idea of going to Turkey, where crowns are more affordable.

But just as I was about to make arrangements, I had to go to work in Germany, where I got a toothache. While at the dentist, I decided to give bleaching another shot.

I’d tried home-bleaching under the guidance of a dentist back in 2007, but results were minimal and didn’t last long. Teeth whitening strips from the drugstore did nothing at all.

So this time I was going to try the more powerful in-office bleaching.

But my dentist advised against it.

He told me that as a dental professional, hydrogen peroxide was the only lightening agent he was permitted to use, which wouldn’t give the kind of results I was looking for. He suggested I go to a teeth whitening studio where more potent bleaching products were allowed.

Apparently, this relates to the distinction between medicinal and cosmetic use under German legislation.

In preparation for the whitening process, my dentist provided a thorough clean. This didn’t make a noticeable difference since most of the staining was too deeply embedded.

Bleaching with Phthalimidoperoxycaproic Acid (PAP)

The whitening studio I found used phthalimidoperoxycaproic acid, usually abbreviated to PAP, which is activated with blue light.

This method reportedly lightens by up to 10 shades without damaging or eroding tooth enamel.

Results were impressive. All visible stains vanished, and my teeth appeared much, much whiter—to the extent that I was no longer embarrassed to show them.

It took three 80-minute sittings, the first costing €299.00 and the following two €59.00 each. There was, however, no discernible whitening effect after the second sitting, so it probably took only two.

I was told I could expect results to last for at least three years. So far, so good.

White Fillings

But my teeth were still not completely white; it’s not possible to bleach dentin, so the yellow and brown at the tops of my upper front teeth would need filling.

This had to be done after whitening since fillings cannot be bleached and would need to be matched to my new tooth color.

Regrettably, there was no health insurance cover for my specific shade of off-white, so I had to carry the cost myself. It turned out to be the most expensive part of the whitening process, but my teeth looked brand new as a result.

Now there was only one more thing to do: keep them that way.

Source: The Neat and Tidy Man

How I Keep My Teeth Looking Whiter

The whitening studio had a huge range of products to prevent bleached teeth from reverting to their natural yellow. But at a price.

So, true to my nature, I looked around for more affordable alternatives.

A Sonic Toothbrush

Years ago I had an electric toothbrush, but didn’t feel it did the job properly. It was too soft and gentle. So I went back to my hard-bristled manual brush, in spite of my dentist warning me it would cause receding gums, which it did.

A sonic toothbrush is something else.

Its vibrations are enough to satisfy even the most vigorous scrubber. It won’t cause receding gums in the process. Hard-to-reach places become a thing of the past; it gets into every nook and cranny. And it removes three times more plaque than manual or electric toothbrushes.

As you probably know, plaque turns to tartar if not properly removed on a regular basis.

I chose a reasonably priced no-name model, which I ordered over Amazon.

Teeth Whitening Toothpastes

In the morning before going out, I use a no-name V34 purple toothpaste, which counteracts yellow undertones to give the teeth a whiter appearance. It seems to work, but I could be imagining it.

This I combine with a quick squirt of three percent hydrogen peroxide and a little baking soda, which, according to the Journal of the American Dental Association, is safe for daily use.

The whitening studio offered a toothpaste with charcoal as an abrasive means of removing and preventing stains, but I’d already tried such a product and didn’t like the fact that it turned my toothbrush gray. Baking soda has an altogether cleaner feel.

Before bed I use a fluoride-free whitening toothpaste containing xylitol.

Flossing and Oral Irrigation

Since getting rid of the stains on my teeth, I floss religiously twice a day: in the morning with a no-name oral irrigator while taking my daily cold shower, and at night with waxed floss.

Eating and Drinking Without Staining Teeth

I haven’t had to give up anything in order to keep my teeth white. I just take a few precautions.

Drink High-Tannin Beverages With a Straw

Colleagues find it amusing that I drink tea and coffee with a straw, but it does prevent stains.

I haven’t yet tried it with wine.

Rinse Your Mouth With Water

Swishing water around your mouth is essential after consuming food and beverages, even if you’ve used a straw.

Better still is to brush your teeth, which I actually enjoy with my new sonic toothbrush. I apply purple toothpaste during the day for its cosmetic benefits—real or imagined.

Chew Xylitol Gum

If not at home, I always chew xylitol gum after eating.

Not only is it good for fresh breath: xylitol prevents bacteria from adhering to teeth, thereby reducing plaque, which, as already discussed, turns to tartar.

© 2024, J. Richardson. All rights reserved.

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