Try It Tuesday!

 

Well, for many people super white teeth give them confidence and increased self-esteem.  However, most of us can't afford the costs of going to the dentist for bleaching.  So, I thought I would look into ways of whitening our teeth for much less money, but would these methods really do the trick?

 

What causes discoloured teeth?  Drinking tea and/or coffee will do it, as well as excessive smoking and improper oral hygiene.  But did you know that as we grow older our teeth become more "yellowish"?

 

During my research on different methods of whitening teeth I came across several ways, yet (almost) every one of them included baking soda as the many ingredient.  Dr. Oz, who we all love and trust when it comes to health advice, has a home remedy I decided to try.

 

Dr. Oz Teeth Whitening Home Remedy (as seen on Pinterest):

 

1/4 cup baking soda

lemon juice from 1/2 lemon

 

Mix together.  Apply to cotton ball or Q-Tip.  Leave on for no longer than 1 minute.  Then brush teeth to remove.

 

Everybody has some baking soda at home, so the ingredients are pretty simple.

 

Dr. Oz called for 1/4 cup of baking soda, which was more than all the other "recipes" I found.  I ended up having to throw some of this away, which is a bit of a waste.

To be honest, I followed Dr. Oz's method almost to a tee, but I didn't apply this mixture with a Q-tip or cotton ball.  I used my toothbrush since the mixture was fairly runny.  It just seemed easier.

 

 

 

Unfortunately, I cannot show you the before and after shots.  I took some, but it is very difficult to photograph your teeth close up on your own.  The pictures did not show the real difference I could see with a blind eye, so you'll just have to trust me on this one.

 

There was a tremendous improvement and my teeth were sparkling once I finished.  Not only did they look like new, they felt somehow "exfoliated" as well.  This is definitely something you should try yourself.

 

 

There are two other very interesting methods I found.....

 

1.  using a banana peel!  Take a piece of the inside of the banana peel and gently rub around on your teeth for about 2 minutes.  The amazing minerals in the peel such as potassium, magnesium and manganese absorb into your teeth and whiten them. 

 

2.  using strawberries!  Take 2 strawberries and 1 tablespoon of baking soda.  Mash the berries and then add the baking soda.  Mix together well creating a paste.  Using a toothbrush (not your regular one!) brush on the mixture for 2 - 3 minutes.  Rinse well.

 

Now, a word of caution - this, and many other home remedies, weaken the enamel of your teeth and should only be done once a week!

 

Have you ever tried whitening your teeth?  What method did you use and what were the results like?  Would love to hear from you in the comment section below.

 

Thanks for stopping by,  Lisa M.