How To Prevent Teeth Stains?
How To Prevent Teeth Stains?
Certain foods and beverages that stains, like soda, candy, and other junk food, should be cut out of your diet. Other items like berries and vegetables contain a lot of nutritional value.
They may be more likely to stain teeth, but that doesn’t mean you should give them up altogether.
There are ways to keep eating the healthy foods you love while preventing stains. Here are some tips:
- Add crunchy fruits and vegetables to your salad plate. If you’re eating berries that can stain, crunchy foods will help cleanse your teeth.
- Don’t let these foods and drinks linger in your mouth. The less time they spend on your teeth, the lower the chance of staining.
- Rinse with water. If you love to savor your red wine, keep a glass of water nearby and swish immediately afterward to rinse, then swallow.
- Finish a meal with a piece of cheese or a glass of milk. Dairy helps neutralize acidity and also contains calcium, which strengthens teeth.
- Use a straw. It may not be an appealing method for wine drinkers, but using a straw can really help smoothies and juices bypass your teeth.
What stains teeth?
Two of the main threats to white teeth are foods and drinks that are acidic and deeply colored. Acidic foods are problematic for teeth because they can erode the enamel, which makes teeth more translucent and reveals the yellow-brown dentin underneath.
The result: teeth with a not-so-nice, yellowish hue. Acids in foods also soften tooth enamel, making teeth more vulnerable to abrasion, wear, and stains. Sports and energy drinks, soda, wine, coffee, and tea all have high levels of acidity, so limit your consumption.
Deeply-colored foods tend to be more nutritious, but they’re unfortunately more likely to stain teeth. Red wine, dark chocolate, teas, intensely-pigmented berries like raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries, as well as colored sauces like tomato, curry, and soy sauce, are all known to stain. Crushing berries and vegetables like spinach and kale in smoothies actually further releases their pigment into the beverage and onto your teeth.