In fact, Americans spend over $1.4 billion dollars in over-the-counter teeth whitening products every year, that’s a good chunk of money just to achieve a different shade of teeth.
Luckily, there are some common household products that do wonders for whitening teeth – baking soda and lemon!
With a bit of patience, I think you can naturally restore whiteness to your teeth. They may not get to be scary sear-out-somebodies-corneas –when-you –smile white, but they’ll appear more like you took good care of your pretty pearly whites rather than just bleaching them like crazy.
Baking Soda and Lemon Juice Paste
Baking Soda isn’t a shocker here. Sodium bicarbonate (its official name) is mildly abrasive; gently scrubbing away surface stains to return teeth to a whiter shade. It’s also very alkaline (the opposite of acidic) so I would think if you have a very acidic mouth or eat a lot of acidic food, it could help balance out the Ph, which would be useful as acid breaks down enamel-this is strictly speculation on my part. It will also reduce the acidity of the lemon juice, which acts as a natural bleach of sorts. I use a mixture of baking soda and water on some days, and use the lemon juice on others, as I don’t want to overdo it.
You will need…
-Several teaspoons of baking soda
-Enough lemon juice or water to form a paste
-A toothbrush
Directions
Mix several teaspoons of baking soda with enough fresh lemon juice (or water) to make a paste. Wipe your teeth and any extra saliva off them with a paper towel. Put a good amount of paste onto your toothbrush and apply. Leave the paste on for 1 minute, then rinse, so as to avoid the acid affecting your enamel. If you are using just water you can leave it on for up to 3 minutes.
Note: You can use the paste after you have brushed your teeth at night if you prefer.
Is this remedy going to guarantee ridiculously white teeth within a week? No. You may start to see a difference, but it won’t be as instant as the commercial products. In the end, will your teeth be so white people squint when you open your mouth? No. And I like it better that way. I’ve found out that since using these my teeth are indeed whiter, my mouth overall feels healthier and it doesn’t look like I bleached the life out of myself.
We live in a world where photo-shopped faces (and teeth) and make-up covered celebrities set the standard for how we look, which makes life hard for people who like, well, real people. As a result, we seem to forget what’s good for ourselves and spend a ton of money just to look like the ideal.
By going natural here, you can save the money for something else, feel better about yourself, and have a healthier mouth (and health is what, in the end, creates real beauty.)
Tips:
– Routine. Set up a routine using these remedies and stick to it, at all costs, to get the most out of them.
– While not “natural” per say, using 3% (I repeat, 3%) hydrogen peroxide as a mouth rinse can whiten your teeth through the process of oxidation. It is an active indigent in many OTC whitening kits but is often times found in much higher (and expensive) combinations in them.
– It’s fairly common knowledge, and difficult in today’s world, but try to avoid dark drinks, such as coke and coffee that stain your teeth.
