Dr. Paras Malde explains why our teeth turn yellow over time and how we can prevent this.
White teeth have long been personified as the standard. And it's a standard that we all find ourselves at some point hoping to achieve. Everything we see, from blockbuster movies to budget TV shows, is filled with sets of pearly white teeth, so it's only natural to start wondering why our teeth are different. If teeth are supposed to be white, then why are ours yellow? Are we missing something or are we just not taking care of our oral hygiene? The answer is surprising to most, and I'm about to go through it right now.
Patients often come into the office with a number of questions related to the shade of their teeth, but they all boil down to one thing: "why are my teeth yellow?".
What are our teeth made of?
Our teeth are made up of a few things, but we'll focus on enamel and dentin. The outer layer of our teeth is enamel.; this is a naturally white mineral and is the hardest substance in the human body, designed to last a lifetime.
But it can deteriorate either naturally, with age, or due to diet and brushing your teeth too hard. Dentin is the bottom layer that becomes more exposed when our enamel thins. and it is darker than our enamel and almost yellow, which causes a staining effect on our teeth, making them appear yellow.
What are the causes of staining?
There are a lot of factors that cause our teeth to become darker over time, everything from teas, coffees and curries to red wine, carbonated drinks and other alcoholic beverages. And smoking is another big culprit. All of these things make our teeth darker, and by the time patients come to the office with concerns about the shade of their teeth, they've already been consuming these things for quite some time. Patients range from mid-20s and up, and even people who are about to get married, who are now more aware and conscious of the shade of their teeth and want to do something about it.
One of the biggest reasons patients become self-conscious about the way their teeth look happens to be job interviews, as daunting as it already is, it doesn't help to have insecurities about your appearance when you walk into the interview room.
How can I prevent this?
Naturally, we then end up discussing teeth whitening as an option with many patients and it is discussed openly and honestly, is easy to obtain, and is only offered to patients who are healthy.
“Quitting smoking and taking care of your diet.”
Without whitening, there are a lot of things in our diet that contribute to tooth darkening, such as: sweet foods, acidic foods, and foods that stain, they will need to be much more controlled and perhaps even eliminated completely to prevent darkening and aging of the tooth. But if that's not something you want to do, then in that regard, one of the things that dentists tend to do and that I personally recommend is to drink through a straw rather than drinking straight from the can. By drinking through a straw, you end up minimizing the staining foods whenever you can.
Can I have whitening done?
Whether or not you can have your teeth whitened or not all depends on your health, if you are considered fit and healthy then you can easily have your teeth whitened and it is not uncommon for many dental offices to have teeth whitening options. “monthly payment”, so that it doesn't affect your pocket.
However, if your teeth are worn down beyond a certain point and it is considered that you are not in the right condition for whitening, then as dentists we prefer to prevent rather than cure (which is why we emphasize the importance of prevention and proper oral hygiene during consultations), so we will ask the patient to work on their health and reach a stable phase before treating them. This may mean quitting smoking and taking care of your diet etc. And once everything is under control, then we can have the patient whiten their teeth and reconstruct/improve their teeth if that is what they request (usually for worn teeth) or want.
Why do I need to bleach before bonding?
The reason we whiten before we build the teeth is because the material used to build the tooth will not whiten. And this is true for anyone who has had their teeth whitened and had their teeth built (bonded) previously, after the whitening they will have to replace the bonded part of the tooth. So of course, getting the whitening done before doing any work is the easiest and cheapest option for the patient. This is why we generally ask our patients to think about whether they want whitening before doing any kind of work to strengthen their teeth. This is simply because if they later decide they want to whiten their teeth then we will have to remove all the work that was previously done, which will obviously have a cost, and then an additional cost to redo all the work because rebuilding teeth can be quite expensive. It is also a long process. So, the usual order is to bring patients into a stable phase, if they are not healthy, and then build their teeth to match the shade of their natural teeth or whitened teeth.
In conclusion, we can limit the extent to which our teeth yellow. Diet and smoking control, as well as performing whitening treatments will give you a beautiful and everlasting smile, which will not change much with age.
Want to learn more about whitening?
If you want to know more about whitening, then click here and here.
And if you're thinking about whitening, go to Enlighten Smiles to see what whitening could do for you.
Source: enlightensmiles.com
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