More and more people each year are turning to cosmetic dentistry and over the counter products to help whiten yellow teeth. We all see celebrities and leaders with sparkling white teeth and see it as both good looking and a sign of good health. But why are some people seemingly blessed with immaculate teeth while others have ugly yellowed teeth?

Teeth turn yellow for a variety of reasons. Someone’s teeth may be yellow due to:

• Smoking
• Drinking dark colored beverages (especially coffee)
• Antibiotics
• Aging
• Genetics

Smoking and drinking dark colored beverage turn your teeth yellow because they leave a residue that gets stuck on your teeth. The particles that smoking cigarettes leaves on your teeth are especially hard to remove and accumulate over time as someone continues to smoke. Coffee and other dark beverages also leave stains on your teeth by small compounds in the beverage sticking to your enamel. These stains are much easier to clean off than the tobacco stains however.

Genetics and ageing both aid the yellowing process by determining the amount of enamel that is on your teeth. Your tooth is covered by two layers, an inner layer called dentin and an outer layer called enamel. Enamel is white while the dentin is yellow. So the thicker the enamel is the whiter your teeth will be. The thinner your enamel is the yellower your tooth will be as the yellow dentin begins to show through your white enamel. Genetics determines how much enamel your teeth have so teeth may be discolored from even a very young age due to thin enamel. Ageing also makes your tooth enamel thinner. As you age, your enamel gets thinner and thinner, exposing more and more of your dentin.

Finally, antibiotics also play a role in whether your teeth are yellow. If you took the antibiotic tetracycline as a child, a side effect of it is yellowing of the teeth. This yellowing is hard to remove because it is inside the tooth, not a stain on the outside of it.

Preventing Stained Teeth

If your teeth still are white, there are several things you can do to prevent them from turning yellow. Do research and consult your dentist, but the following are a list of good habits you should be in for overall dental health.

• Brush and floss at least twice a day, especially after drinking coffee, soda, or tea
• Chew sugarless gum after meals if you can’t brush. It helps loosen food particles and plaque.
• Drink lots of water

Solutions for Yellow Teeth Stains

There are a variety of methods you can use to turn yellow teeth white. You have two different routes if you want to brighten up your smile. You can go to a dentist to get professional cosmetic dentistry done or you can use an at home whitening kit. Professional teeth whitening prices can be very high and take several office visits to achieve the desired results, but it does the best job of whitening yellow teeth. Over the counter kits contain less carbide peroxide than the professional methods do because carbide peroxide can irritate your stomach if you swallow it. Over the counter kits can be in the form of gels, strips, or trays. Trays are generally the most effective, but also the most expensive, especially the kits involving a mold that fits to your teeth. White strips are a good compromise, cheaper, but they will take more applications to achieve the desired results. There are also several methods of natural teeth whitening, but many of them ultimately weaken your enamel and should be used with care.

There are many different brand names of teeth whiteners to be found online through a simple amount of research.

For many people, yellow teeth undermine their self confidence and make them appear less attractive to the opposite sex. They are caused by a variety of things, including diet, lifestyle choices, and genetics. However, there are a variety of methods, including cosmetic dentistry and teeth whitening kits, you can use to correct your problem and restore your pearly white smile in no time!