From home remedies to professional treatments: common teeth whitening procedures used to obtain a dazzling smile.

5 Ways to Make Your Smile Look Younger

As we age, our smiles can start to lose their sparkle. Over time, tooth enamel starts to wear away, exposing yellowness underneath and creating gummy smiles that are more prone to staining. Here are 5 simple ways to restore your smile and keep it looking young and fresh.

1. Eat healthy food

Sugar, as well as anything else that sticks to the teeth (such as crackers and raisins), is well known for causing tooth decay. Tooth decay discolours and destroys the teeth, so it’s well worth putting down the sugary snacks and picking up the fruit and veg.

Research has shown that the higher the amount of folic acid you consume, the lower your risk of bleeding gums, which is one of the first and most telling signs of gum disease. Foods rich in folic acid include spinach, potatoes, broccoli, fresh orange juice and wholemeal bread.

Another food that’s good for your teeth is yoghurt. Consuming just ¼ cup of yoghurt every day can decrease your chances of suffering from serious gum disease. This is due to probiotics found in the yummy dairy product that compete with cavity-creating bacteria in the mouth.

2. Brush and floss

To keep your teeth looking young and sparkly, you should brush your teeth twice every day, for two minutes each time. On top of this, you need to floss once daily.

Make sure your toothbrush has soft bristles, and brush in a vertical, short, sweeping motion rather than scrubbing horizontally.

When flossing, slide the floss down underneath the gumline as well as between the teeth. Bacteria and plaque are prone to getting stuck between the hidden recesses, and if left there this can leave to decay and inflammation.

3. Visit the dentist often

Nothing ages your mouth quite like an old filling or misaligned teeth. That is why visiting your Frederick Dental Clinic dentist is so important. Your overall oral health should be checked at least every six months, and if your teeth have shifted significantly over the last few years, it might be time to consider orthodontics to put the youth back into your smile. When your teeth shift, your jaw does too, and this can give your face a collapsed appearance.

4. Rinse your mouth with water

Just rinsing your mouth with water after eating is a little move that can make a massive difference when it comes to decreasing staining, residue and tooth decay.

5. Consider teeth whitening

Young-looking smiles are defined by pearly white teeth. Unfortunately, our teeth become discoloured with time due to thinning of the enamel exposing the dentin underneath.

There are several ways for you to whiten your smile, from special toothpastes to whitening kits to in-chair treatments.