Background

Teeth can be stained by beverages (such as tea, coffee, colas, and red wine), foods (such as berries, tomatoes, soy sauce, and balsamic vinegar), tobacco products, certain medicines, and genetic factors. Tooth whitening refers to procedures or products that make teeth look brighter and remove stains. Tooth whitening has been gaining popularity since the 1990s. Whitening procedures involve whitening toothpastes, bleach products, non-bleach products, lasers and lights.

Effectiveness Effectiveness definitions

Natural Medicines rates effectiveness based on scientific evidence according to the following scale: Effective, Likely Effective, Possibly Effective, Possibly Ineffective, Likely Ineffective, Ineffective, and Insufficient Evidence to Rate.

Dosing & administration

Adverse effects

Interactions with pharmaceuticals

None known.

Interactions with herbs & supplements

None known.

Interactions with foods

None known.

Interactions with lab tests

Interactions with diseases

Mechanism of action

Extrinsic stains refer to those on the surface of the teeth which are theoretically easier to remove. Therefore, over-the-counter and home-use products can be used.

For example, whitening toothpastes may remove stains on the tooth's surface with abrasives and chemicals that are theorized to buff away stains but not alter the color of teeth.

Intrinsic stains, which are beyond the tooth's enamel of the tooth, are more difficult to remove. Removing intrinsic stains is generally practiced in a dentist's office with stronger substances. Bleaching with a peroxide agent (typically carbamide peroxide) is used for intrinsic stains. In theory, the agents are absorbed into the tooth, where they attach to stain particles, break them up, and change the color of the tooth. The use of lasers and lights are purported to activate or speed up the whitening process.