Live Green Style

If you want to cut some cost on cleaning your teeth in dental office, you can try to use various whitening toothpastes, whitening strips, and tooth whitening systems. But the concern is that most of these products, even those that claimed as a natural, use chemicals that many of us would think twice about putting into our bodies.

There are home treatments that can give us whiter, cleaner teeth without the chemicals and moreover, these natural whiteners are less expensive than commercial treatments. Baking soda has been used to whiten teeth for years.  Its popularity is growing in our days, as this product combines two popular trends: cutting cost due to financial crisis and green healthier living. LiveGreenStyle.com made out own review with taking in consideration  hundreds of feedbacks that are available on the internet and interviews with some dentists.
Here is what people think about  using baking soda to clean their teeth:

Recipes are vary:

1. Pure baking soda.
2. Baking soda + toothpaste.
3. Baking soda + lemon juice.
4. Baking soda + strawberries.
5. Baking soda + salt. There are no many evidences of using the mixture out of this components.

How often people use it:
Amazingly how people differ in frequency of usage! From every day (no tooth paste at all anymore, just baking soda with a little water) till 2-6 a month (most of people) and not more than three times a year (a few opinions).

How to use baking soda for teeth whitening:

1. Pure baking soda. Using a cotton swab, apply it to your teeth, brush clean with water and rinse. Or brush your teeth with baking soda as you would do it with usual toothpaste. Rinse thoroughly.
2. Baking soda + toothpaste. Just add a little bit of baking soda to regular toothpaste and brush as usually.
3. Baking soda + lemon juice. Mix 1 teaspoon baking soda with 1/2 teaspoon of lemon juice. NOTE: Lemon juice contains a lot of acid and shouldn’t be overused, or used alone.
4. Baking soda + strawberries. Mix 1/2 teaspoon baking soda with 1 ripe strawberry. Spread the mixture onto your teeth. Leave on for 5 minutes, then brush thoroughly with toothpaste to remove the berry–baking soda mix. Rinse.

How to use it for fighting bad breath:
Sprinkle a little on the toothbrush bristles, and brush your teeth

What dentists say about cleaning teeth with baking soda:
Overall, summarizing all the feedbacks, dentists are not excited about using baking soda, due to the potential side effects of daily or continual long term use. However, most of them agreed that baking soda is a cheap way to quickly whiten the teeth especially for those who are tight on cash and need a quick solution to keep up the smile. It should not be used often because it can corrode enamel ad and make the teeth sensitive. Dentists recommend baking soda as a teeth whitener no more that 2, maximum 4 times per month. This is an occasional treatment only and can not replace regular visit to the dentist.

Reported Benefits:

• It is a natural, harmful chemical-free tooth-cleanser.
• Keeps teeth clean, helping mechanically remove old collection of food.
• Effective for polishing teeth.
• Good for fighting bad breath.
• Proven results in buffing away stains from coffee, red wine, dark sodas, etc. from clothes.

Reported Concerns:

• Abrasive nature of baking soda. If it is not use properly, it can cause damage of chewing gum, corrode enamel ad makes the teeth sensitive.
• The taste and after taste is not the best compared to the regular toothpaste.
• As for using lemon or strawberries with baking soda, it’s better to use it even more random than just pure baking soda with water, and not to leave on the teeth for long, as  strawberries and lemon juice contain acidwhich could damage the enamel on the teeth and cause cavities.

Conclusion: some helpful tips based on reviews and analysis

• As usually, some people are fully satisfied and some not. It looks like using baking soda have different effects for everyone. Frequency of use of the this little remedy is going to be different. While sensitive toothed people are not recommended to exceed 1-2 times a month as per specialists recommendations, people with non sensitive teeth can do it more often, around 5-6 times a month.
• After you stop using it for a week or two, if you notice sensitivity starting, then continue at a lower frequency.
• Use a soft toothbrush and avoid a rotary toothbrush (some people find it works great with rotary ones…)
• While using baking soda, brush teeth gently in order to prevent enamel damage
• If you dislike after taste, you might gargle with mouthwash after.

A box of baking soda costs a little more than a dollar. It doesn’t seem to be a money saving toothpaste due to little usage frequency. However, saving money on an occurrence of expensive teeth whitening products definitely puts baking soda in a good position in a list of money saving tips. It has so many other uses in the beauty world, so we are going to keep Livegreenstyle.com Green Community informed. Keep visiting us!

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