Smoking can dramatically change the color of your teeth. Moreover, smokers are more likely to experience moderate to severe tooth discoloration than non-smokers. Due to tobacco, yellow stains appear on the teeth that are difficult to clean with a toothbrush alone. This is because nicotine and tar from cigarettes seeps into tiny holes in the enamel of your teeth. If you smoke and want to keep your teeth white, you will have to work harder towards brushing your teeth and also remove any stains that have already appeared.
Steps
Part 1 of 2: Avoid Tobacco Stains
Step 1. Brush your teeth
While brushing your teeth is important for all people's dental health, it is especially necessary for those who smoke and want their teeth to stay white. Brush your teeth two to three times a day for at least two minutes. Buy a whitening toothpaste to enhance the effect of brushing your teeth.
- As a rule, smokers have poorer oral health and a higher risk of periodontal disease, so it is very important for them to look after the health of their teeth. Brushing your teeth will not only reduce the risk of mouth problems like periodontitis, but it will also whiten your teeth.
- Try brushing your teeth right after you smoke. This will remove the resin and other substances that remain on your teeth and prevent them from penetrating the enamel.
Step 2. Consider using a special toothpaste for smokers
On store shelves, you can find special toothpastes for smokers. They contain more abrasive ingredients like baking soda or aluminum oxide than regular toothpastes. They will help remove tar and nicotine that have penetrated the enamel.
Since these toothpastes are more abrasive, they will wear away the enamel faster. If this bothers you, use a special toothpaste only occasionally, and the rest of the time brush your teeth with regular toothpaste
Step 3. Use a mouthwash made specifically for smokers
Specialty mouthwashes can be found commercially that are designed to reduce the amount of tar and other chemicals in the mouth after smoking. They must be used after every cigarette you smoke.
Regular mouthwashes will not keep your teeth white, but they will improve overall oral health. Use your regular mouthwash, even if you can't find a resin rinse anywhere. Most importantly, choose a remedy that fights gingivitis and freshens breath at the same time (instead of the usual mouthwash, which simply freshens breath). They're easy to tell apart, as medicated mouthwashes contain fluorides and antimicrobial agents
Step 4. Floss your teeth
Teeth should be flossed before going to bed or after brushing with a toothbrush. Dental floss will not only improve overall oral health, but will also help remove nicotine and tar from your teeth. This will reduce the chance of stains between your teeth.
- Choose any type of dental floss you like. Unlike the way you will brush between your teeth, the type of floss is not as important.
- Floss your teeth once a day. It doesn't matter what time you brush your teeth, the main thing is that you do it.
Step 5. Visit your dentist regularly
If you are a smoker, then you should visit your dentist more often than usual. Ask your dentist how often he / she thinks you should visit him / her.
- During your visits, your dentist will perform a thorough cleaning of your teeth to help remove light stains and reduce the appearance of the strongest ones.
- If you're curious, your dentist can provide information on how to quit smoking and the harmful effects of smoking on your oral health.
Part 2 of 2: Remove Tobacco Stains
Step 1. Brush your teeth with baking soda
It may sound strange, but for the sake of white teeth, you should try it. Brushing with baking soda will noticeably affect the whiteness of your teeth.
- To do this, sprinkle some baking soda on your toothbrush and brush your teeth as usual.
- Don't leave the baking soda on your teeth for too long or brush too hard. Brushing your teeth with baking soda too vigorously or keeping it on your teeth for a long time can ruin the enamel, which will do more harm than good.
Step 2. Mix baking soda with peroxide
Add just a few drops of peroxide to the baking soda to make a paste. Then use this paste as you would any regular toothpaste. Soda with peroxide will whiten your teeth even more than soda alone.
Since this mixture is very abrasive, do not use it for more than a few days and then stop for a few months to avoid damaging the enamel of your teeth
Step 3. Use over-the-counter teeth whitening products
Whitening toothpaste is the easiest to use because it can be used to clean your teeth just like a regular toothpaste. However, there are many other teeth whitening products to choose from. They are usually sold as gels, strips, or whitening solutions that are applied using a dental tray. These products are very effective at removing smoking stains.
Don't use gels and bleaches too often. The strips can be used on a regular basis
Step 4. Try teeth whitening products that you can find at home
There are several natural remedies that claim to be able to whiten teeth. These include banana peels, strawberries, and apple cider vinegar. You can also rinse your mouth with coconut oil.
- To use strawberries, crush a few berries and add baking soda to them. Use this mixture as a toothpaste. This remedy may be effective because of the malic acid present in strawberries.
- Rub your teeth with the inside of a banana peel to whiten them. It contains a variety of minerals that can help promote dental health.
- One part apple cider vinegar can be mixed with three parts water and then added to regular toothpaste. This will enhance the whitening effect of the toothpaste.
- To use coconut oil, place 1 tablespoon of the oil in your mouth and rinse your mouth for 15 minutes. But start with less time to get used to this feeling. Try to focus on not swallowing the oil. This process will increase saliva production and kill bacteria in the mouth.
Step 5. Whiten your teeth in a professional way
This is a very effective treatment for stains. Cosmetic cleaning will remove more stains than regular brushing. It can be done in between regular brushing, but should not replace it.
Harsh chemicals are used during professional teeth whitening. After brushing like this, your teeth will be very sensitive for some time
Step 6. Quit smoking
This is the most effective treatment for tobacco stains, although not the easiest. If you quit smoking, the stains caused by nicotine and cigarette tar will fade over time.