How to Remove Coffee Stains from Teeth

When you think of your morning routine, what do you think of? Is it a big breakfast of crispy bacon and scrambled eggs? Perhaps it is rushing around the house to find the car keys you “misplaced”? Or if you are like 50 percent of all American adults, you may think of grabbing your morning coffee.

How to Remove Coffee Stains from Teeth

It is no big shock to know that American’s love their coffee. Statistics show that an average American citizen will consume about three cups of coffee a day, with almost 65 percent of all American adults drinking at least two cups. This has led the coffee industry to bloat to $67 billion in annual revenue. Business. Is. Boomin’!

You do not need too look very hard to find evidence of this, either. A Tim Horton’s, Dunkin’, and Starbucks storefront can be found on  virtually every major street corner in the United States, and in the mornings they are continually flooded with customers. Specialty, gourmet coffee shops have sprouted up country wide over the last decade. And if shelling out cash and waiting in long lines is not your thing, than you may be one of 68 percent of Americans that own an electric coffee maker for their home and brew yourself.

But all of this consumption may come at a cost, and one that may be as obvious as it is damaging to a person’s oral health. And that is tooth staining.

What is the Hype For?

So what is it about coffee that literally and figuratively gets Americans out of bed in the morning? For one, it is the caffeine. The U.S. has continually been listed as one of, if not the most overworked nation in the world. Annually, Americans work more hours than those of other countries, while also taking less vacation and sick time than almost every other country.

All of those hours add up, and caffeine from a cup of coffee can be just what the overworked employee needed to pick themselves up. Caffeine has proven to boost energy levels in consumers, helping productivity in their work, as well as boosting morale and even happiness in their social and personal lives.

Coffee also possesses a lot of health benefits. Essential nutrients like vitamin B2 and potassium, among others, are all found in a typical cup of coffee. And coffee is one of the best sources of antioxidants for American’s who eat a typical Western diet. In fact, coffee may be the primary way many Americans get their daily antioxidant intake.

Chances of getting Type 2 diabetes have been found to be significantly reduced by drinking coffee, with heavy coffee drinkers being 25-50 percent less likely to get the disease. Drinking coffee also has shown to help protect you against diseases like Alzheimer’s, certain cancers, and heart disease. Daily consumption has been found to protect your liver and may reduce the likelihood of a person having a stroke.

How Coffee Stains Teeth

For all of the benefits to drinking coffee, however, there is the one very annoying, typically very obvious downside to drinking: yellow teeth. A study by Onepoll found that seven in 10 people are self conscious about their teeth, with yellow teeth being a prime culprit. This yellowing is brought on by more than just bad oral hygiene. It is also attributed to smoking and diet, including drinking wine, tea, and coffee.

Coffee yellows teeth in two ways. The first way deals with coffee’s high acidity. Once in contact with teeth, this acid breaks down enamel. This weakens teeth as well as decays the enamel until the lower layer of dentin is uncovered. Dentin is naturally brown in color, making the teeth appear yellow or brown.

The second aspect to coffee is that it contains tannins. These tannins stick to teeth, leaving a yellow hue behind. If left to sit for extended periods of time or with continual use, these tannins seep deeper into the teeth and leave a more permanent yellow discoloring.

Removing Coffee Stains

Getting rid of yellow coffee stains can be as simple as brushing your teeth immediately after consumption. However, this is not always practical for most Americans as it is often consumed in the morning, either at or immediately before work.

Biannual dentist cleanings provide another more surefire way of removing the discoloring and should be conducted regularly. Professional teeth whitening or surgery is another option, though hefty price tags may be a large barrier for many Americans.

Home remedies are also possible, though degrees of success are varied among each technique. Baking soda toothpaste is an oft cited practice where a person brushes their teeth with baking soda from two times a week to two times a month. The baking soda digs into the pores of the teeth, scrubbing away the yellow stains and whitening the teeth. Hydrogen peroxide can also be used in a similar fashion.

A lesser known treatment is oil pulling. Oil pulling is the process of swishing oil around the mouth, cleaning the mouth and ridding it of bacteria. This removes plaque and may make the teeth appear whiter.

At home remedies are not one size fits all, though, and those that work for one person may not garner the same results for another.

What to do with More Permanent Yellow Coffee Stains

Unfortunately, at home remedies, dentist cleanings, and regular oral hygiene do not always keep your teeth white. For those struggling with a deeper, more noticeable yellowing of teeth, whitening kits may afford the best results. Professional teeth whitening kits have become the quickest and cheapest method of teeth whitening on the market. Combining professional results at half the price, professional teeth whitening kits can remove coffee stains successfully and cost effectively.

The Pur-Well Teeth Whitening System comes with all of the essentials you will need to remove the deepest set yellow stains. The Pur White Smart LED mouthpiece and patented whitening gel maximizes whiteness and minimizes tooth irritation and sensitivity. Touch up hard to reach areas with the Pur White Advanced On-the-Go Whitening Pen. And for those with higher teeth sensitivity, the Pur-Well Teeth Whitening System comes with Remineralizing Gel that protects and lessens tooth sensitivity even further.

By combining all of these products into one kit, you can restore your teeth to their natural whiteness without breaking the bank. So I guess it’s true. You can have white teeth and drink your coffee too.