Beauty Tip: Mother of pearls
Monday, October 26th, 2009
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Teeth whitening is all the rage, especially since ‘celebrities’ keep flashing us with their most unnatural, blindingly white assests.
Fact: Dentists have added six (6) new white shades to their palette since teeth bleaching became popular in the 1990s.
- Women’s Health, October ’08
If you’d rather pass on the expense that comes with teeth whitening, check out these other options to whiten your smile:
1. Pass-me-the-baking-soda
Johnathon B. Levine, a cosmetic dentist in New York City, suggests that baking soda, the common refrigerator deodorizer also removes discoloration on your teeth. The abrasive particles polish the surface while a chemical reaction between backing soda and water lightens stains. Just dip your toothbrush in the soda and scrub away.
Warning: Damage can be done to the enamel with the scrubbing so limit using baking soda this way to once a week.
It is my understanding that the overuse of baking soda can increase the porosity of teeth, so my heavy coffee and black tea drinkers who are concerned about teeth discolouration may want to go easy on the use of baking soda. If your teeth are already very sensitive, my suggestion is to avoid this step.
… Or you can simply switch to a toothpaste that contains baking soda. 
2. Crunchy munchies
“Foods that are high in celulose – a strong starchlike compound found in celery, carrots, and apples – act as natural abrasives, cleansing teeth and removing surfaces naturally” says Jeff Golub-Evans, D.D.S., a cosmetic dentist, also of New York City.
Greens such as spinach, broccoli, and lettuce contain mineral compounds that form a film over the teeth, so pigments from other foods can’t stain.
(If only I read this before having all that curry for Divali…)
3. Be Shady
Ladies, a cosmetic trick to make your teeth look fashionably white is to stick to lipstick/ lip-glosses with blue undertones in them, like blue-based red or pink lipsticks. Think (the various hues of):
~ fuchsias
~ plums
~ cherries
~ berries … (also fruits that are great for your heath. “antioxidants” YUM!!!)
Wearing accessories close to your face in these shades (earrings, scarves, necklaces, pins etc) can also bring out the whiteness in your teeth.
Avoid: Warm colours (yellow, orange, brown and warm shades of red) close to your teeth as these will only bring out the yellow in your teeth.
Say cheese!
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