Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Why Do your Teeth Turn Yellow?

Having problems with your smile because your pearly whites aren’t as white as you want them to be? Chances are, you’re not alone; a lot of people have their own troubles with yellow teeth. Yellowing teeth tend to manifest as a person ages, but it could happen sooner if you don’t take good care of your teeth.

Categories of Tooth Stains

While there are a lot of factors that could yellow your teeth, these would usually fall into two categories: extrinsic and intrinsic stains. Extrinsic stains are generally stains found at the surface of the enamel, or the tooth’s outermost layer. Your diet would usually cause the development of these stains, from dark-colored foods and beverages to ones having high alcohol content. Moreover, habits such as smoking and chewing tobacco can cause extrinsic stains, along with poor dental hygiene.

Intrinsic stains, meanwhile, happen within the teeth’s dentin, or the innermost layer of the teeth. This happens when several factors cause changes in the light-transmitting properties of the enamel, which makes your tooth look yellow. Medications, such as tetracycline and doxycycline for children and chlorhexidine for adults, can cause discoloration on teeth. Even common drugs, such as antihistamines and blood pressure medications, can cause yellowing teeth among adults.

Dentists would generally recommend observing proper dental hygiene to avoid yellow teeth. Once your teeth do become yellow, you can seek help from a cosmetic dentist to restore them to their former color.

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