Can't get teeth white..

job seeker

Hi all, So I was a smoker for the past 12 years, up until 41 days ago. So now I want to get my teeth white. I think my teeth are suffering from a lack of enamel.

They are a slightly yellowish colour and at the bottom of my teeth are kinda transparent. Can anyone advice me on how I can get them white? I brush and floss twice a day. But this isn't helping.

They look like this pic.. https://s.hswstatic.com/gif/tooth-enamel-1.jpg


Should I be using a special type of tooth brush or toothpaste? Any other advice is appreciated.

Any help is appreciated.

Thanks very much.

Fishorsealant

Teeth in that picture look very normal to me. If your teeth look like that then I wouldn't be concerned.

Teeth are supposed to be translucent near the bottom/Incisal edge.

It could just be your natural tooth colour after staining from smoking removed etc.. Teeth aren't naturally white.

JJJJNR

Try oil pulling with coconut oil for a few weeks.

Fishorsealant

JJJJNR wrote: »

Try oil pulling with coconut oil for a few weeks.

Would you suggest dental homeopathy or snake oil?

btkm8unsl0w5r4

Your teeth look pretty normal, its common for natural teeth to have translucenty at the edges. To improve the colour only dental bleaching will help, toothpaste etc only removed the surface stains and does nothing for the intrinsic colour.

Asl your dentist about whitening, and dont bother wasting your money on quick internet fixes.

Oil pulling has no effect on tooth colour...or much else for that matter.

AllForIt

Sorry to hijack but does bleaching have any health benefits to it or is it purely cosmetic?

btkm8unsl0w5r4

Its good for gum health as it kills a lot of the bad bugs in your mouth, originally bleaching was meant to be a treatment for gum disease but the whitening effects are more interesting for most people. It does not harm teeth in any way.

AllForIt

Ah well that's exactly why I asked because I have gum disease that I have gotten under control by giving up smoking etc and I was wondering to myself if bleaching would further assist in keeping it at bay...so ya I'll likely get it done now. Good info - thanks !

Fishorsealant

AllForIt wrote: »

Ah well that's exactly why I asked because I have gum disease that I have gotten under control by giving up smoking etc and I was wondering to myself if bleaching would further assist in keeping it at bay...so ya I'll likely get it done now. Good info - thanks !

Optimal plaque control is your best bet for maintaining periodontal health not tooth whitening!

job seeker

AllForIt wrote: »

Sorry to hijack but does bleaching have any health benefits to it or is it purely cosmetic?

Don't worry.

job seeker

JJJJNR wrote: »

Try oil pulling with coconut oil for a few weeks.

I thought this was a joke until I googled it. Never heard of using coconut oil t I was whiten teeth. Thanks for the info..

job seeker

Fishorsealant wrote: »

Teeth in that picture look very normal to me. If your teeth look like that then I wouldn't be concerned.

Teeth are supposed to be translucent near the bottom/Incisal edge.

It could just be your natural tooth colour after staining from smoking removed etc.. Teeth aren't naturally white.

Why are they supposed to be translucent?

My teeth hasn't gotten any whiter, since quiting though. I was full sure they would.

I always assumed that teeth were supposed to be white. I know afew people with white teeth and I thought that it was normal. As apposed to my slightly yellowish teeth..

Oral Surgeon

job seeker wrote: »

Why are they supposed to be translucent?

My teeth hasn't gotten any whiter, since quiting though. I was full sure they would.

I always assumed that teeth were supposed to be white. I know afew people with white teeth and I thought that it was normal. As apposed to my slightly yellowish teeth..

You stopped smoking 6 weeks ago... what change did you expect to see after how many years of smoking??

You wouldn't expect an old tractor to become cleaner just because you stopped driving through the mucky field.... you will need to do something to address the intrinsic and extrinsic stain that has built up over the years.....

Fishorsealant

It is the way your tooth is "built".
It is a normal finding due to the optical properties of teeth.
Teeth that weren't this way would lack vitality.

There is a wide variety of tooth shades in the population varying between and within individuals.
Quitting smoking won't make your teeth whiter. It will prevent further staining caused by smoking and is a great for your oral health!

job seeker

Oral Surgeon wrote: »

You stopped smoking 6 weeks ago... what change did you expect to see after how many years of smoking??

You wouldn't expect an old tractor to become cleaner just because you stopped driving through the mucky field.... you will need to do something to address the intrinsic and extrinsic stain that has built up over the years.....

10 Years. I thought that smoking was turning my teeth yellow and restricting blood flow to gums etc. So I though that my teeth may improve, similar to how your lungs become clearer or tobacco stains go from your fingers etc.

What do you recommend I do?

Fishorsealant wrote: »

It is the way your tooth is "built".
It is a normal finding due to the optical properties of teeth.
Teeth that weren't this way would lack vitality.

There is a wide variety of tooth shades in the population varying between and within individuals.
Quitting smoking won't make your teeth whiter. It will prevent further staining caused by smoking and is a great for your oral health!

Ah damn... They just look dirty!

I see what you're saying..

endacl

Fishorsealant wrote: »

Would you suggest dental homeopathy or snake oil?

Did you not hear? Coconut oil is the new magic everything oil. OP, if coconut oil doesn't work, may I suggest:

AllForIt

Fishorsealant wrote: »

Optimal plaque control is your best bet for maintaining periodontal health not tooth whitening!

I'm not sure what you mean by optimal. Obviously tooth whitening on it own would do f all. Fitz said that it can kill bugs so I don't see how you could argue it's not a good idea if that in fact is true.