How to whiten your teeth naturally!

Brighten your smile naturally without the use of harmful chemicals

I’ve searched all over to find safe and natural ways of whitening teeth and came across many such as pastes of dried oranges and bay leaves, rubbing your teeth with the bark of a walnut tree or rubbing white vinegar on them. Now as much as I’m sure they “might” work, none of them seem very appealing and for Heaven’s sake, where does one even find walnut tree bark???

Personally I wouldn’t want to use commercial teeth whitening products because of packaging waste, some like Crest whitestrips are tested on animals (otherwise they don’t get the CDA or ADA approval so I’ve heard) and my dentist said they can make your teeth more sensitive.

A solution for me would be something that is easy-to-use, non-toxic, has no waste (or packaging would at least be recyclable), not tested on animals and inexpensive.  These are the 4 easiest solutions that I’ve come across and you might already have the ingredients in your home.

Four (4) ways to naturally whiten your teeth:

1. Brush your teeth with baking soda after brushing with toothpaste. (It also helps remove tartar left behind after brushing)
2. Brush your teeth with a paste of green clay and water.  (It also freshens breath)
3. Brush your teeth with a mix of 2 mashed and ripened strawberries with a bit of baking soda
4. Rub apple cider vinegar on your teeth at night

I remember as a kid my mom used to comment on how one of her friends had such white teeth despite being a heavy smoker. He said that he brushed his teeth with baking soda and that it removed all the stains.

Now I’ve heard that baking soda can be abrasive on your teeth enamel so I asked 3 different dentists at my clinic if baking soda was bad to use or if it would have any kind of side effect. The answer was a resounding “NO” by all.

This past May, after I had a tooth pulled (worst pain of my friggin’ life), the dentist gave me this blue dental rinse to prevent infections. Well it certainly prevented infections, but it stained the sides of my teeth. So I decided to start brushing my teeth with baking soda to see if that would sort of “sand” it off.

It’s been about a month now and although my teeth are not as white as those in the Crest commercials, they are definitely whiter. Even more, I like the immediate reaction of them removing the tartar that is left behind, so my teeth feel even cleaner now.

For ease of use, I keep my baking soda in a mini Tupperware container in my medicine cabinet.

Store the baking soda in a container in your medicine cabinet

After brushing my teeth, I then dip the wet tooth brush into the container and brush again.

Dip a wet tooth brush into baking soda then brush teeth

I haven’t yet tried the green clay option but you can buy it from a health food store. It’s the same green clay you would use to make a facial mask. Since it also freshens breath, try giving this to your boyfriends who smoke! If you’re going to use the baking soda option, buy a no name brand as Arm and Hammer tests their products on animals. No point in supporting that.

Use a green clay or baking soda paste to whiten teeth

I’ve never tried the strawberry option and although it’s definitely a luxury option, I don’t have access to them everyday. But the next time I eat them, I will try to imagine them helping my teeth!

Before going to sleep, I will pour a little apple cider vinegar on to my fingers and rub them onto my teeth. This should be interesting to see.

Rubbing apple cider on your teeth can help whiten them