We all know that the way a smile looks can massively change someone’s appearance, so when you find your teeth getting yellow – even though you’re brushing twice a day – it can be very frustrating.
Despite this odd occurrence, many people end up having their teeth whitened regardless, to give them that shiny new smile – but what if you want to keep it natural?
Isn’t this what we all want? (Getty Stock Photo)
Why do teeth go yellow?
The most common reason behind teeth going yellow is ageing, and as much as you want to fight it, this is unavoidable according to Didsbury Dental Practice.
Unless you want to get them whitened, your teeth will turn yellow even if you are incredibly attentive to them, say experts.
The enamel protecting your teeth wears away as time goes on, making your teeth more susceptible to staining.
Some people have less enamel on their teeth in general, meaning that their teeth will become yellow quicker than for those with a thicker layer.
As well as this, factors such as oral hygiene, diet, smoking and medication can affect how easily stained your teeth are – but, what is the common mistake that people keep making that is ruining their gnashers?
Your teeth will naturally become more yellow over time (Getty Stock Photo)
What is causing teeth to go yellow quicker?
After eating breakfast and having your coffee, you might rush to brush your teeth to get the taste of it all out of your mouth, but it turns out that this may not be the smartest move.
In fact, you should wait at least 30 minutes before brushing or flossing your teeth, as doing it too soon after could actually make your situation worse.
It pushes the harmful acids further into our teeth, which explains why dentists usually recommend soft toothbrushes rather than medium or hard ones, as those can brush your enamel away.
In fact, dentists recommend that you brush your teeth before eating breakfast, as the bacteria that builds up in your mouth overnight will feed on the sugars of breakfast.
But what are the main factors that can affect the colour of teeth?
Dentists recommend to brush your teeth before breakfast (Getty Stock Photo)
Food and drink
When it comes to diet, certain foods can cause your teeth to turn yellow by sticking to your enamel, with acidic drinks such as coffee or tea also giving the bacteria in your mouth a naturally staining acid that can harm your enamel and bind the colour to your teeth.
Other foods such as fruit juices, bread, cereal, and pastries, are damaging to your teeth, so the bottom line is that it’s crucial that you brush your teeth before breakfast to avoid discolouration.
Oral Hygiene
Brushing and flossing twice a day is crucial, and can lead to plaque build-up, once again damaging the enamel on our teeth.
Smoking
Smoking is already harmful to our lung and heart health, though it does unsurprisingly also impact the mouth.
Tar and nicotine from tobacco can attach themselves to enamel and cause your teeth to turn yellow over time.
Medication
Certain medication can cause yellowing of the teeth, so it’s always best to look at the list of side effects before using certain medicines.
Featured Image Credit: Getty Stock Photos
Topics: Health, Food And Drink
Joshua Nair
Dentist shares warning over common morning mistake that can lead to people’s teeth turning yellow
Are you guilty of this dental mistake?
When you wake up in the morning, at what point do you brush your teeth?
Are you eager to brush away the germs of the previous night? Or do you prefer to wait until you’ve had your morning coffee so you don’t spend the day with stale breath?
Most of us don’t really pay much attention to the order of our morning routine, it’s more likely that we’re trying to snooze our alarm for as long as possible instead of worrying about what point we’ll scrub our gnashers.
However, it turns out there is actually a right and wrong answer when it comes to the time you clean your teeth – with a dentist revealing that your morning habits could lead to your pearly whites turning yellow.
Turns out there’s a very common dental mistake we could be making each morning. (Getty Stock Image)
According to dentist Dr Shaadi Manouchehri – who goes by @dr.shaadi.manouchehri on Instagram – brushing your teeth straight after downing a cup of coffee will damage the enamel.
“Never brush your teeth after you’ve just had coffee,” she continued, revealing that brushing after having consuming anything acidic is bad for your dental health.
“Coffee is quite acidic… if you go and brush your teeth straightaway, you’re rubbing the acid onto the tooth and wearing the tooth away.
“Wait at least 30 to 60 minutes – you don’t actually have to brush your teeth, just rinse with some mouthwash or drink water.”
The reason why brushing after drinking coffee is frowned upon is because the acidity is one of the main causes of enamel erosion – which leads to your teeth having a stained appearance.
.jpg)
Are you guilty of these dental habits? (Getty Stock Image)
Avoiding brushing straight after drinking coffee wasn’t the only advice that Dr Manouchehri gave either, with the dentist urging viewers not to brush straight after eating your breakfast or vomiting either.
“Don’t brush your teeth after you have breakfast,” she explained, adding that why it’s better to brush prior to eating.
“Brush them beforehand because if you brush straight away you’re going to be damaging your enamel.”
She continued: “When you first wake up in the morning you have quite a lot of bacteria in the mouth and that needs to be brushed off before you have your breakfast.”
Understandably it may be harder to avoid brushing your teeth after vomiting, but it’s for the best.
“The contents of the stomach are extremely acidic and your teeth are made up of minerals,” Dr Manouchehri said.
“So, when the contents of the stomach have come into the mouth, then the mouth is very acidic. And if you brush straight away, you’re rubbing the acid onto the tooth even more. So, wait at least 30 to 60 minutes before you brush your teeth.”
And for anyone who can’t bare the thought of waiting that long, invest in mouthwash as a way to freshen up before following with a drink of water to help ‘neutralise the acid quicker’.
Featured Image Credit: Getty Stock Images
Topics: Health, Food And Drink
Brenna Cooper
Dentist says people make morning ‘mistake’ when brushing teeth that’s causing them to go yellow
Give your teeth a good old scrub – but at the right time
A dentist has said that people are making a common mistake when it comes to brushing their teeth in the morning which could be helping turn their teeth yellow.
TikToking dentist Doctor Vikas Prinja told his followers that lots of people were making a mistake with their dental hygiene in the morning.
Brushing is important to keep your teeth clean and combat any potential decay they might experience – but when you’re brushing them matters as well.
.jpg)
Brush before breakfast, dentists say, though many people are busy. (Getty Stock Photo)
According to the dental doc, ‘you could be ruining your teeth’ if you don’t give those pearly whites a good scrub-a-dub-dub with toothpaste before you have breakfast.
He explained that while we sleep the body’s saliva production drops off, and saliva helps protect teeth against the bacteria that would wear them down and turn them yellow.
Eating before you brush your teeth gives that bacteria a big meal and they’ll release acid as a waste product which you’ll be scrubbing into your teeth if you brush after breakfast.
This take is backed up by other dentists like Doctor Sam Jethwa, who says that your mouth is likely to be quite acidic in the morning if you’ve just had breakfast.
They warned that if you brush your teeth right afterwards then you’re possibly just brushing that acidic stuff into your chompers and wear away the enamel.
You might think you’re scrubbing the bad stuff off, but you’re actually scrubbing it in. (Getty Stock Photo)
Brushing before breakfast gives your teeth some added resistance to what you’re about to put them through – think of it like adding a protective coating to your teeth instead of leaving them exposed and trying to scrub away the contaminants afterwards.
While we thank the dentists for that wise advice, we’d also like to point out that many people don’t really have the time in their morning routine to brush their teeth and wait for the minty mouth feeling to subside before having breakfast.
Everyone knows that the deliciousness of some orange juice in the morning is absolutely spoiled if it passes through a mouth that so recently had an encounter with toothpaste.
Meanwhile, when it comes to the time to swill some mouthwash around your gob, another dentist has said you shouldn’t do it after brushing.
Brushing your teeth leaves a fluoride residue on them and immediately going for the mouthwash will clear that away which is not ideal.
In addition to the advice not to brush right after breakfast, dentist Doctor Shaadi Manouchehri also said you’d best avoid doing it right after you’ve been sick or just after the morning coffee.
If you’ve just chundered or quaffed a coffee then you’re rubbing acid on the tooth which is not good for them in the long run.
Featured Image Credit: Getty stock images
Topics: Health
Joe Harker
Dentist shares the three times you should never brush your teeth
London-based dentist Dr Shaadi Manouchehri has warned people they will be doing more harm than good.
We all know that our teeth need a clean twice a day. That’s child’s play – two minutes every morning and night, we get it.
But some of us still need to brush up on some areas of our dental knowledge, as it turns out there are some occasions when we should leave our gnashers alone.
Dr. Shaadi Manouchehri, a London-based dentist, has warned people that there are three specific times when you should never brush your teeth, as you will be doing more harm than good. Take a look here:
We all love that super fresh feeling after having a good scrub with a bit of Colgate or whatever your toothpaste of choice is, especially when we might have overdone it with sweet treats or feel like there is something stuck in our teeth.
But Dr. Manouchehri told her nearly 19,000 Instagram followers in a post on her account, @dr.shaadi.manouchehri, that they should resist refreshing their mouths in a trio of certain circumstances.
She regularly shares tips on dental hygiene with social media users and many are often left stunned by her revelations – and this one is no different.
In a short clip, the London School of Medicine and Dentistry graduate detailed three individual occasions before explaining the reasons why you should never get your toothbrush involved.
Dr. Manouchehri explained: “You should never brush after you’ve just vomited. The contents of the stomach are extremely acidic and the mouth is in a very acidic state so, if you brush straight after you are basically wearing away your enamel.”
Instagram/@dr.shaadi.manouchehri
Although it might be the most effective way of trying to wash away the horrid sensation of being sick, you are essentially smearing all the bad stuff in every nook and cranny if you brush your teeth straight after.
The dentist continued: “You should never brush straight after breakfast.
“This is when you have just eaten, your mouth is in a very acidic state and if you brush your teeth you are rubbing that acid on the tooth, which is a mineral, and it can wear it down.”
She also claimed that brushing your teeth should be off limits if you’ve just scranned loads of sweets.
Dr Manouchehri continued: “Don’t brush your teeth when you’ve just had sweets, wait at least 60 minutes.
“This is because when you have just eaten sweets the mouth has digested it into an acid is going to get rubbed on the teeth and destroy the enamel.”
Grinding or clenching your teeth, environmental factors, wear and tear, drinking sugary drinks, eating sugary foods or eating acidic foods are the leading causes of enamel loss – and we need to cling onto it, as that’s what protects our pearly whites.
Getty Stock Photo
It’s safe to say social media users were pretty shocked by Dr. Manouchehri’s warning and the comment section was abuzz with debate.
One said: “Welp, I’m screwed. I’ve been doing all 3 for my whole life,” while another wrote: “Okay lady so what should we do instead??? Sit in vomit breath? Please help.”
A third added: “Not me always brushing my teeth after these thinking I’m doing the most.”
And a fourth chimed in: “Why aren’t theses things told to us as kids!? A lot of our teeth could’ve been saved if we started knowing sooner!??”
Others disputed Dr. Manouchehri’s claims in the comment section though, saying they had been advised differently by their own dentists – so next time you’re getting a clean and polish, here’s some ammo so your locked and loaded to make small talk.
Featured Image Credit: Instagram/@dr.shaadi.manouchehri / Getty Stock Image
Topics: Health, Instagram, News, Food And Drink
Olivia Burke
Expert explains how to avoid getting yellow teeth after dentist shared common mistake people make
Here’s how to maintain pearly white teeth
Dental experts have shared tips on how you can avoid getting those dreaded yellow teeth.
Thanks to social media influencers and shows such as Love Island, it now feels like our regular-looking teeth no longer cut it.
After all, who couldn’t help but feel a little self conscious when we’re constantly bombarded with images of super straight, pearly white teeth (AKA veneers) all of the time?
The good news is you don’t have to go to the extreme of flying out to Turkey for a fresh set of veneers to feel more confident either, as there are plenty of ways you can look after your pearly whites at home.
A recent post from Dr. Shaadi Manouchehri – who goes by @dr.shaadi.manouchehri on social media – revealed that habits such as brushing your teeth after breakfast or your morning coffee are causing damage to your enamel, which will inevitably give your teeth a tea-stained yellow tinge.
If you’ve been guilty of skipping brushing your teeth before bed or after an acidic drink don’t worry, there are several ways you can avoid or rescue mis-coloured teeth.
Specialised toothpastes
Of course not every product in the supermarket which claims to give you a Hollywood smile within a handful of days will work as advertised, but it’s likely that they can help with the appearance of your teeth.
It’s also worth look for a toothpaste which combines ingredients such as baking soda and hydrogen peroxide are bleaching agents and can improve the appearance of discoloured teeth.
Bleaching agents such as baking soda and hydrogen peroxide can be found in some toothpastes. (Getty Stock Images)
However make sure you don’t overdo it as excessive use can also damage your teeth. According to the American Dental Association hydrogen peroxide should not exceed a concentration of 3.6%, while Colgate states that a percentage between three and six is safe for use.
Whitening strips and trays have become increasingly popular over the past couple of years as a quick fix method, however it’s important not to overuse them.
Toothpaste containing charcoal can also be beneficial however, like whitening strips, it’s important that you don’t overuse them as it will end up damaging your enamel.
Foods to avoid
Coffee and milky tea are, of course, major offenders in staining your teeth. However, they’re not the only food and drink which can cause your gnashers to get a yellowed appearance.
Most of our teeth look like this – and its absolutely fine. (Getty Stock Images)
Fizzy drinks, citrus fruit drinks and red wine can also cause staining due to their sugary and/or acidic nature – which is abrasive to your teeth.
Foods such as curry, tomato-based sauces and berries can also cause erosion to your enamel.
We’re not suggesting you live off a diet of just water and plain vegetables – that would be miserable – but the key thing to remember with any food is moderation.
Don’t overdo the sugary foods, maintain good dental health and throw in the occasional use of hydrogen peroxide toothpaste or whitening strips and your teeth will most likely be fine.
