Smart Ways to Enhance Your Smile This Year

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Your smile says a lot about you, so it makes sense that you want it to be as bright and cheerful as possible. While you could run to the dentist and see what whitening options are available to you, there are a few smart tricks you can look into for enhancing your smile yourself. While everyone will have different whitening goals and everyone has a different smile to work with, you can probably find a few solutions that work well for you.

Sometimes, whitening your teeth and brightening up your smile is much simpler than you think. While home remedies and lifestyle changes may not offer the same kind of results as a dentist procedure, many people don’t need results that severe. If you’re on the hunt for a bit of a boost, some of these could be exactly what you need. Here are just a few smart ways you can enhance your smile this year.

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  Floss Daily

Your dentist may have already told you this one, but in case you’ve been slacking, here’s a bit of a reminder. Not only is flossing daily good for your oral health, but it can also give your teeth a cleaner look and get any residue out that may have been stuck before. You can floss at any time of the day, and you can even floss more than once a day if you feel you need to. Even if you’re feeling lazy, it can make a huge difference.

• Take Vitamins

Your teeth and gums are a part of your body, so it makes sense that taking vitamins and making sure you have all the essential nutrients you need will also help your oral health. While you may already know that calcium is good for tooth and bone health, vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin K and potassium can also be beneficial to your smile. Whether you take the extra steps to eat foods rich in these vitamins or you take them as supplements, they can enhance the health of your teeth and your whole mouth.

• Visit Your Dentist

If you don’t do this already, it should be at the top of your priority list this year if you truly want your teeth and gums to sparkle clean. It can be easy to forget to make the regular six month appointment, but giving yourself little reminders and setting the date far in advance can help you keep on top of things. Going for a biannual cleaning is one of the best ways to take care of your teeth consistently.

• Oil Pull

Coconut oil can have so many benefits for your teeth — plus, it’s safe and easy. It can reduce bad breath, prevent cavities and even whiten your teeth. In order to practice oil pulling, take a tablespoon of coconut oil and swish it around in your mouth anywhere from five minutes to twenty minutes. Remember, don’t swallow it when you’re finished. Instead, spit it out. You can do this before you brush your teeth for whitening and protection.

• Use Activated Charcoal

If you’re on the hunt for another natural remedy for teeth whitening, activated charcoal brushing may be for you. Activated charcoal can work to remove surface stains on the teeth from daily life, which whitens and brightens them. You can find activated charcoal in powder form or even toothpastes to use when you want a brightening boost. However, using them every single day could weaken your enamel, so this shouldn’t be your main way of brushing your teeth. 

• Limit Coffee, Tea, Red Wine

While this one doesn’t have to be all or nothing, limiting the staining substances that come into contact with your teeth can help to keep your smile bright and healthy. Specifically, coffee, black teas and red wine can be particularly difficult culprits of this. Taking some time to avoid these substances or even simply cutting back this year can make a noticeable difference. Often, it’s all about finding a balance and seeing what works within your lifestyle.

• Quit Smoking

If you’re already a non-smoker, then this doesn’t apply to you, but it’s common knowledge that smoking is bad for your all-around oral health. While, yes, it yellows your teeth, it can also have detrimental effects on your gums as well as the rest of your mouth — and your body. Quitting can be hard for some people, but most smokers who quit notice a difference in their oral health when they do. Even cutting back can make an improvement.

Enhancing Your Dazzling Smile This Year

Not all dental improvements are created equal. While teeth whitening can mean getting a cosmetic procedure from your dentist, it can also mean swishing a spoon of coconut oil — it all depends on what you’re looking for. Whether you take a few vitamins this year or quit the cigarettes, making a bit of an extra effort to brighten your smile might just make you more comfortable in your own skin from the inside out.