Dentist in Calgary, AB answers common question, “What can I do to maintain my brighter smile?”

When it comes to improving your confidence and your appearance, professional teeth whitening is often a top choice. Teeth whitening from your dentist can penetrate deep dental stains, truly transforming your smile. So, now that you have this amazing new smile, you’ll want to keep it looking great and might be asking, “What can I do to maintain my brighter smile?” Just follow a few simple tips and you can keep your vibrant white smile looking great for the long term.

If you’re in Calgary, AB and want to inquire about a brighter smile with professional teeth whitening, contact Lake Chaparral Dental Care today at (403) 768-2271.

What causes tooth stains?

In order to keep your smile looking bright and white, it’s important to understand what causes teeth to become stained in the first place. These are the most common culprits:

• Dark colored foods and beverages such as coffee, tea, red wine, and red pasta sauce
• Sodas
• Acidic Fruits
• Certain medications (some antihistamines, high blood pressure drugs, antibiotics)
• Excessive fluoride
• Trauma/injury

Now that we know what causes teeth stains, let’s discuss how you can manage these risks to keep your smile bright.

Step One: Stop daily discoloration

The easiest way to keep your teeth white is to avoid foods and drinks that will stain your teeth. This is the only way you can truly keep your teeth looking as vibrant as they did when you left the office.

Since that’s almost impossible to do, there are still ways you can keep the smile bright and still enjoy your favorite foods.

Immediately following your whitening treatment, you should avoid coffee, wine, and tea. This will prevent the newly whitening enamel from becoming stained almost instantaneously. It’s also a good idea to avoid berries and soda. As a general rule, if something will stain a white shirt, it will stain the teeth.

If giving up your coffee or wine is a no go, then try using a straw. While it can take some getting used to, a straw can prevent these beverages from staining the surface of the teeth.

Step Two: Rinse… and then rinse again

You should always try to brush your teeth after you eat or drink, but if you can’t, rinsing will help. Food and drink residue and debris like to stick around on teeth, causing discoloration and eventually leading to plaque build-up and decay.

A simple rinse of clean water around the mouth after every meal or non-water beverage can keep the smile brighter longer and can improve overall oral health.

Step Three: Improve your brushing game

You always want to make sure that you are replacing your toothbrush regularly. Start by using a brand-new tooth brush after your whitening session and then switch it out every two months. Toothbrushes with worn down or frayed bristles do not perform as well when removing food debris from the teeth.

It’s a good idea to invest in an electric toothbrush because they are more effective at removing residue and plaque buildup. Electric toothbrushes move the bristles much faster than you can do on your own, helping to reach difficult areas between the teeth.

You can also use a whitening toothpaste and mouthwash to keep the teeth looking great.

Step Four: Snack smart

Considering choosing crunchy fruits and vegetables as snacks. Not only are they healthy and low in calories, crunchy fruits and veggies scrub the teeth, which helps prevent stains and plaque buildup. Some great options are:

• Carrots
• Apples
• Celery
• Pears

Eating crunchy fruits and vegetables as a snack helps clean the enamel, remove food particles, and promote good blood flow to the gums, which improves total wellness along with the appearance of your smile.

At Lake Chaparral Dental Care in Calgary, we offer professional at-home whitening. We provide patients with custom-fitted mouth trays and a professional strength bleaching agent to be applied in the comfort of home. The trays are worn for about an hour each day for a gradual whitening. The process is repeated daily until the desired level of whiteness is achieved. The trays and gel can be kept and used for periodic touch-ups as needed.

If you have been considering a whiter smile, call us today at (403) 768-2271 to find out about our teeth whitening services.