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My teeth are stained

2nd August 2016

To determine if you indeed have stained teeth, face yourself in the mirror and examine your teeth closely. Ask yourself these questions:

• Do your teeth have an overall yellow or yellowish tint?
• Are there any prominent brown spots in your teeth?

If your answer is yes to either one or both of these questions, you may have stained teeth. It is difficult to come to a definitive conclusion since natural brightness, tint, and thickness of enamel varies individually. The best way to find out if you have stained teeth is to consult your dentist.

There are a lot of considerable factors that cause staining and discoloration in teeth. The following are some common factors:

• Poor and inadequate dental hygiene
• Eating food known to cause staining in tooth enamel like blueberries, certain types of candies, etc.
• Drinking liquids also known to cause staining like coffee, tea, soda, red wine, etc.
• Smoking or chewing tobacco
• Some types of medications as a side effect
• Deep decay or damage to the tooth nerve or root which can darken tooth from the inside
• Ageing

Here at Oatlands Dental Lounge, we offer various tooth whitening methods from simple take-home kits to in-surgery treatments. To find out which method you can benefit the most from, set up an appointment with your Oatlands dentist. During the consultation, your dentist can examine your teeth and assess which method will best suit your dental condition and lifestyle. It’s also your opportunity to ask your questions—anything from information regarding the different techniques they offer, how they differ from each other, to the pros and cons if you choose one method over the other. Once you have come to a decision, you can schedule your teeth whitening treatment.

One of the treatments we recommend at Oatlands Dental Lounge is airflow tooth polishing. Airflow tooth polishing is an aesthetic dental procedure that effectively eliminates stains from your tooth enamel without causing damage to your teeth. It uses a measured combination of air and a mild abrasive powder inside a water jet that cleans tooth enamel gently, removing discolouration, stubborn stains and even accumulated plaque from food, drink, and smoking. The procedure is fast, painless, and only requires a single treatment. If you’re interested in airflow tooth polishing, consult your Oatlands dentist. Before anything, your dentist needs to perform a dental examination first to check for tartar, or build-up of hardened plaque. Tartar deposits need to be removed first prior to airflow tooth polishing.

Note that even after professional teeth whitening treatments, staining caused by some types of medication may not disappear. For this reason, your dentist might recommend you to have dental veneers.

Toothpastes and any teeth whitening product can only do so much teeth whitening. These products only whiten natural tooth substance, and do not produce the desired effect on false teeth like crowns, dentures, and veneers. During your consultation and before your teeth whitening procedure, your dentist will discuss with you what’s to be done with issues such as false teeth.