Teeth Whitening - anyone had success?

[MancMum]

I was just looking at my hospital photos when I had DD and was horrified at my teeth - they seem to be the same colour as my skin!! Am now on mission to get them to be at least off white rather than on beige.... have bought some pearl drops toothpaste and am using that ... but short of emulsioning them, has anybody any ideas of other products that would be good to use?

Thanks

it was probably just the lighting mancmum, i'm sure your teeth aren't really beige!

Hi MancMum,

I've just spend 2.5 years wearing orthodontic braces on my top and bottom teeth and whilst they are now pretty damn straight they are also pretty damn yellow. I asked my dentist about having them whitened and his advice was not to use Britesmile or any of the other quickie treatments as he claims that they are now proving less effective in the longer term than the old fashioned bleach trays that you wear overnight. I trust my dentist implicitly - he's NHS and had never done any uneccesary work on me or my family so I reckon he's a good bloke.
I have had impressions taken for the bleach trays and will get them in a couple of weeks. Happy to report back on the progress I make though the time taken varies from person to person and depends on how white you want to go (I don't want flourescent just less grey/yellow/icky). The course of treatment will cost just over £300 which isn't too awful, either.
I tried pearl drops and didn't really see much difference. Apparently there are certain colours of lipstick that make yellow teeth look better or worse but I can't remember what they are!!!
Yours, grinning yellowly,
Lyndap

Thanks for that - would be very interested to hear how the bleach trays go... I have noticed that some lipsticks look worse - I think I need to wear strong colours as the beige/brown ones just seem to merge in with my teeth!! (honestly spacemoneky they are a funny color!!)

Hi MancMum. 'Whitening' toothpastes sold in shops just get rid of stains from coffee, smoking or red wine. They don't make your teeth any whiter (I did some research on this for a consumer charity).
I'm thinking of going the same route as Lyndap; there are other things your dentist can do to help but think bleaching is the simplest (you don't really want veneers, do you?).

Message withdrawn

Try lipstick with a blue rather than yellow undertone (pink, purple, cool reds etc). Also, Avon do a range of lipsticks that claim to make your teeth look whiter and your breath smell fresher (must be blue undertone and minty flavouring) - I haven't tried them but they might be worth a go. If you do try them, and they work, let us know: my teeth seem to get yellower with each passing day, and it ain't pretty.

I had veneers done a few years ago .... no crises yet but still haven't bit into an apple! Anyway, the bottom ones were whitened using the bleach tray and it was very successful. I'll be doing it again soon as the effect has begun to fade. So first time round it has lasted for nearly 5 years.

I used to work for a toothpaste manufacturer and as the other poster said whitening toothpastes are only any good for stains.

Oh, and teeth naturally yellow with age as the dentine in them shows through the enamel.

I had veneers fitted years ago and they still look great ... even if I say so myself. I had them fitted because my teeth were uneven, they've never broken (as opposed to Essbee's) and I can eat apples(unlike Portree). Sorry, don't know about solutions to whiten your teeth but if it's a recommendation for veneers that you're after - I've never regretted having mine done.

I've been using a diy kit from Crest, which are strips you apply to upper and lowe teeth for half hour at a time. Don't know if they're available here tho' as I got them on holiday in Us.

Could see a difference in three days. Not the big gleamy white ones you see in the ads, but I'm happy with the improvement. Bought another box to use at home.

Oh dear, don't want to put anyone off veneers. I can eat apples but have a psychological block about doing it. It took me about 2 years to tackle crusty bread, too. And I have not used my teeth to cut sellotape since either. I love my veneers, the best thing I ever did. In fact when I replace them I'm going to go for whiter. Hopefully face lift at the same time ..