Most have heard about how baking soda can whiten your teeth but how exactly do you use it? Whenever you’ve seen it at the market, it comes in a little box and it has a powdery texture. What do you do with this powder and how can you use it for whiter teeth?
We’re going to go over a variety of ways for how you can use baking soda to get your teeth whiter and remove teeth stains. We’ll also explain the pros and cons for each of the methods.
It would be great to know because this product is easily accessible and inexpensive to boot. If it works for you, you can definitely save a lot of money on improving your dental aesthetics.
According to the Journal of the American Dental Association, baking soda is more effective at stain removal and whitening than a lot of other toothpastes which don’t contain it.
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How to whiten your teeth with baking soda and plain water
All you need for this method is just some baking soda and some running tap water.
- Add a teaspoon of baking soda into a bowl.
- Add some water into the bowl.
- Mix until the mixture is a paste-like consistency.
- Add water or baking soda until you get the paste consistency.
- Apply mixture to your toothbrush.
- Brush for at least two minutes.
- Rinse your mouth out thoroughly.
Advantages of this method
The major advantage of using baking soda with just water to whiten your teeth is that it is the safest way to do so. According to the American Dental Association, baking soda has one of the lowest abrasiveness of any type of toothpastes out there. That means you don’t have to worry about it abrading away the enamel layer since it is harmless.
A common misconception is that it is abrasive which is not true. The vast majority of toothpastes out there are actually MORE abrasive than baking soda. In fact, the only thing that is less abrasive than this is plain water.
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That should be enough proof that it is safe to use this on your tooth. Don’t let people scare you away from using this safe and inexpensive product to whiten your teeth! The ADA has said that it is effective in removing extrinsic stains from your teeth when used daily.
Disadvantages of this method
The major disadvantage of using this is that the mixture does not contain hydrogen peroxide. All teeth whitening products contain it or some derivative of it. It is hydrogen peroxide that diffuses through the tooth and oxidizes all of the organic substances, which is how the teeth become whiter.
Since this does not contain any of that, it will lack this property. It doesn’t mean that it won’t remove stains, because it certainly can abrade away extrinsic stains. The only type of stains that it won’t be able to remove would be the deeply embedded intrinsic stains. Those need to be oxidized in order to be removed.
How to whiten your teeth with baking soda and hydrogen peroxide
For this method you will need to grab a bottle of 3% hydrogen peroxide from your local pharmacy:
- Add a teaspoon of baking soda into a bowl.
- Add half a teaspoon of hydrogen peroxide into the bowl.
- Stir the mixture lightly.
- Apply it to your toothbrush and brush for two minutes total.
- Make sure you rinse your mouth out really well to eliminate all residue.
Why you should use this method
When you add hydrogen peroxide into the baking soda, it means that it will gain the ability to whiten intrinsic stains. The baking soda can only remove extrinsic stains via mechanical abrasion but is unable to affect the intrinsic ones. The addition of the hydrogen peroxide eliminates that weakness by granting it the ability to oxidize the internal stains.
In other words, we’re saying that this method of using baking soda is more effective than using it with plain water. If you want whiter teeth, we would recommend that you try this method in lieu of just adding plain water.
According to a study done by the Journal of Esthetic and Restorative Dentistry, a 3% hydrogen peroxide whitening product that was used 3x a day for 2 weeks showed whiter teeth. In fact, the results were good enough that it actually maintained the whiteness of the teeth all the way up to the six month mark from just that treatment alone.
Related content: How does hydrogen peroxide whiten teeth?
Disadvantages of using this way
The only disadvantage that we can think of for using this method over the one with plain water is that there is an additional cost. You have the added expensive of needing to purchase hydrogen peroxide as opposed to tap water which is free.
Nonetheless, this is only a small downside because you can find hydrogen peroxide online for about a dollar a bottle. That is really inexpensive in the grand scheme of things if you compare it to a professional in-office product by your dentist!
How to whiten your teeth with baking soda and toothpaste
It is difficult to brush pure baking soda on your teeth since it is in the form of powder. This method makes it a lot easier because you simply add it to your regular toothpaste.
- Apply your regular toothpaste to your toothbrush.
- Add baking soda to the toothpaste by sprinkling it on top.
- Brush your teeth for at least two minutes.
- Rinse out your mouth to get rid of any residue.
Pros
The pro to doing it this way is that you don’t need a bowl to mix it. The other two methods of using water or hydrogen peroxide requires you to mix the concoction together. This method eliminates the need to fiddle around with having to make it.
You can also use your existing toothpaste so you don’t have to go out there and purchase anything new. In addition to that, whatever properties the toothpaste has will also be transferred to this mixture. For example, if it has anti-sensitivity effects you will also have that with this new mixture.
Cons
We can’t really think of any cons in using it this way except for the fact that the baking soda is treated as more of a topping in this case. The other methods utilize the baking soda as a base for a toothpaste. Here, it is not the base or foundation but rather just the topping.
How to whiten your teeth with baking soda and lemon juice
Recently there has been a trend on the internet for using lemon juice and baking soda to whiten teeth. Here is how you do it:
- Add one teaspoon of baking soda into a small bowl.
- Squeeze a few drops of lemon juice into the bowl.
- Stir the mixture until it becomes a paste.
- Apply the paste to your teeth and let it stay for about 2 minutes.
- Rinse out thoroughly so that no residue remains.
Why you shouldn’t use this method
Despite this novel method of whitening your teeth, we cannot recommend using it to do so. The reason is because lemon juice is highly acidic and may potentially cause enamel erosion.
If you want evidence, look no further than those individuals who like to bite into lemons and limes. People who like to do this all have eroded enamel on their front teeth since it comes into direct contact with the juices of lemons and limes. There have been multiple reports about lemons causing enamel erosion.
Of course this won’t damage your enamel right away but over a long period of time, your enamel will start becoming eroded. You’ll notice this when you see the enamel start thinning and your teeth actually begins to look more yellow.
Your teeth will look more yellow when the enamel erodes away because the dentin layer which is underneath is allowed to show through more. If you’re seeing yellowing on your front teeth, it means that you’re losing enamel. You need to stop using this method immediately!
How to whiten your teeth with baking soda mouthwash
Instead of brushing with baking soda, you can also turn it into a mouthwash to whiten your teeth.
- Make one cup of water.
- Add a teaspoon of baking soda.
- Add half a teaspoon of salt.
- Stir the mixture.
- Rinse and gargle with the mixture for about one minute.
- Spit it back out.
Why you should use this method
This is an alternative way to using baking soda since all of the other ones ask you to brush with it. With this, you can use it as a mouth rinse. The benefit is that you can actually use this in addition to the brushing.
Disadvantages
A disadvantage would be that this rinse does not contain any hydrogen peroxide. It can be made more effective if you also add a teaspoon of it to the mixture!
The reason is because without hydrogen peroxide, the mixture would only be able to remove surface stains and not intrinsic stains. You need the peroxide in order to oxidize the deeply embedded stains.
However, adding the peroxide into a mouth rinse does reduce some of its effectiveness since saliva contains a lot of enzymes that break down the hydrogen peroxide. Therefore, this may still not be as effective as you may have hoped!
The easiest way to whiten with baking soda
We’re aware that everyone loves DIY and home remedies for teeth whitening but we just want to point out that the easiest way isn’t a do it yourself. The simplest way to whiten your teeth with baking soda is to just buy the Arm & Hammer Whitening Toothpaste.
What makes it easy:
- It already comes in toothpaste form.
- It contains baking soda in it.
- There is already hydrogen peroxide mixed into it.
- You don’t need to mix anything together.
It really doesn’t get any easier than that because everything is already pre-made for you. All you have to do is just use it like a regular toothpaste.
How to use Arm & Hammer Whitening toothpaste:
- Quickly rinse your mouth out with water to wet all of the teeth.
- Wet your toothbrush under running water.
- Apply toothpaste to toothbrush.
- Brush your teeth for a total of two minutes.
- Rinse out your mouth really well to get rid of all residues.
Why you should use this method
Two reasons why you should use this method is that it is inexpensive and you can use it everyday in place of your regular toothpaste.
This toothpaste does not cost any more than other toothpastes on the market. The pricing is fairly normal. We would have to say that if you go for the boutique or all natural toothpastes, those would cost even more than this. Thus, pricing is a definite strength when choosing this.
You’re permitted to brush with this every single day so it can be your primary dentifrice to not only whiten your teeth but also to prevent cavities. It is good that you don’t have to switch back and forth between multiple toothpastes in order to keep your teeth white. It is safe enough that you can even brush with it at least twice a day.
Takeaway
Baking soda is very effective at removing extrinsic stains and whitening your teeth. It is not only safe to use but it is also recommended by the American Dental Association.
There are multiple ways that you can use this to whiten your teeth but in our opinion, the easiest and simplest is to just buy the Arm & Hammer whitening toothpaste. It already contains everything that you need and it is pre-mixed. It doesn’t require any additional work from you such as mixing it.
Is it more expensive than plain baking soda? Yes it is but the toothpaste itself doesn’t cost any more than other brands of toothpaste so you’re not really losing out on anything. That is the beauty of all of this because this way of teeth whitening is fairly inexpensive. It is definitely worth a try if you’re trying to improve your smile.
