8 Food and drinks that can stain your teeth
Nobody likes having stained teeth. We are all drawn to a white, bright smile, as it signifies youth and vibrance. If you’re not into having any cosmetic dentistry, or tooth whitening done, try and avoid these foods and drinks:
- Tea – the tannins in tea cause stains to form on your teeth. Especially if you are a black tea drinker, expect to get stains forming on your teeth if you drink one cup or more a day. These stains can be easily removed at your 6 monthly professional scale and polish, but if you want to prevent these stains, brushing with an electric toothbrush can help.
- Coffee – most people are aware that coffee causes stains on teeth. Similar to black tea, black coffee is definitely the worst offender.
- Red Wine – also containing tannins, red wine lovers may find stains collecting quickly on their teeth. Wine is also highly acidic, so can contribute to dental erosion (wearing away of the enamel by acids)
- Cola drinks – the dark colour of these drinks contributes to dental stains. They are often high in acid and sugar too, so frequent drinking could cause you dental problems such as tooth decay and dental erosion.
- Balsamic Vinegar – this dark vinegar contributes to stains. But hopefully you aren’t eating that much of it.
- Blueberries – the dark blue in the berries can cause stains to the teeth. Interestingly, I noticed this a lot in my younger patients who used to eat a lot of blueberries! Try and drink some water after eating to prevent staining.
- Beetroots – this dark red vegetable can cause lots of stains. It’s also recommended to avoid beetroots after procedures like tooth whitening or other cosmetic dentistry such as veneers or crowns.
- Curries – the bright colour of many curries can cause staining not only to teeth, but also temporary crowns or veneers, and tooth coloured fillings as well.
If avoiding any of the above don’t seem to help brighten your smile, you might want to try some natural ways to brighten your smile. We have reviewed charcoal toothpastes and Warpaint Natural Teeth Whitener.
Finally, if you really want to achieve a big change to your smile, consider cosmetic dentistry or tooth whitening at our Claremont dental clinic.
You can book an appointment here right now.
