You Are Paying Too Much To Whiten Your Teeth

I am someone who is constantly worrying about my teeth and my dental hygiene. Don’t get me wrong, I go to the dentist, I brush my teeth twice a day for 2 minutes, I even floss! However, I still get worried that I am not taking proper care of my teeth when it comes down to it. The biggest insecurity I face with my teeth is making sure they are not looking really stained or yellowed. Teeth are one of the first few things that I notice about someone when meeting them for the first time, so I imagine that this is similar for other people as well. I have always been a big coffee drinker, ever since starting college. In fact, there are a lot of different foods and beverages that I enjoy that have long been labeled as heavy teeth stainers. The problem is that I just really enjoy these types of things. There is truly nothing better than a cup of coffee freshly brewed in the morning; except for a fresh iced coffee in the afternoon! These are the simple joys of life in my opinion.

However much I love coffee and other foods and drinks that aren’t good for my teeth, I do not argue that they can take away the whiteness and the shine from my teeth overtime. This is something that is simply unacceptable to me, so I have spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to best whiten my teeth. I used to buy whitening strips that you can find at Walmart or Meijer or any pharmacy, but those are super uncomfortable and are so expensive.

It is really crazy how pricey some of those things can get. Instead, I switched to using toothpaste that is specifically made for whitening teeth as it does the usual cleaning and freshening. I have been using Crest 3D White toothpaste for some time now, and I feel like it does a pretty good job. In addition, I have tried different at home remedies to find marginal success for some. For a while, I tried using a lot of hydrogen peroxide to whiten my teeth. This method is pretty well backed by lots of research and is a known way to whiten teeth. Sometimes I would swish it around in my mouth and over my teeth like you would with mouthwash, and other times I would simply put some on my toothbrush and use it that way.

There is also some benefit to mixing hydrogen peroxide with baking soda. You can make it into a paste by using less hydrogen peroxide or a mouthwash by using more. Either way, it will be helpful in whitening teeth. In my opinion, the combination of hydrogen peroxide and baking soda is probably one of the most disgusting things you can put in your mouth, so after trying it once I now avoid it like the plague. What I use the most right now is a reusable teeth whitening kit that I got for Christmas last year. You wear it on your teeth like a mouthguard after applying some of the included whitening gel. Then you turn on the mouthpiece and it lights up your teeth with a blue light; this supposedly activates the whitening gel even better.

What Do You Do For Canker Sores?

Ever since I was little, I have always struggled with those cursed canker sores. I mean, what even are they? Some people say that they can occur for a variety of reasons, including diet, injuries, or other factors. Personally, I feel like I would get them at the most random times. Sometimes I even believed that I was getting them because of stress or something, because there would be very stressful weeks of my life that would be accompanied by 3 or 4 canker sores at once. Honestly, what a rotten place this world can be. All joking aside, canker sores are really annoying and can definitely ruin your day. I have a lot of experience dealing with canker sores, so I wanted to write this article that expresses my accumulated knowledge and know-how when it comes to battling canker sores on a regular basis. Hopefully I can provide you with a few tips and tricks to get rid of the next canker sore you encounter.

Sadly, I have found that a lot of experts hold the opinion that not much can be done to treat canker sores. This is extremely alarming and stupid, and I think that medical experts and dentists are way out of line here. Of course there is something you can do to treat them! We just have to find what works. As far as at-home remedies are concerned, I have come up with a few that definitely work about 20% of the time. Again, this is my own experience and personal theories, so take what I have to say with a grain of salt. Most of these remedies are for easing pain and hopefully speed the healing process. One big one that I make use of is sucking on ice chips and letting them dissolve over the canker sore and affected area. This is a super good one because the cold feels so nice on that sore and can numb it for a little bit. It will also help with inflammation - because there is nothing worse than continually biting your canker sore on accident because it is just so big and annoying. 

Another at-home remedy that might work for you is to rinse your mouth with saltwater or baking soda and water. This is one that has worked for me on several occasions and usually makes my mouth feel a bit better afterwards. My hope for you is that you can find some ways to deal with your canker sores at home and not have to go to the dentist and get them looked at. I know a friend of a friend who has to have some canker sores surgically removed by a dental surgeon because they were hurting his mouth so badly and he could not get them to go down for weeks! What an awful way to live life. One thing that has consistently worked for me is to use Orajel. This is a product that my mom introduced me to when I was younger and first started getting canker sores, because she has also dealt with them all her life as well.

Orajel is great because it greatly reduces the pain of a canker sore and leaves your mouth feeling more normal for a bit. You can eat in peace without constantly wincing from coming into contact with your canker sore.