Light Smile Work: Ways to Keep Dentures White & Bright

Once you’ve gotten dentures, it’s easy to think your smile troubles are solved forever. Still, don’t forget that your new replacement teeth can darken over time. You’ll want (and should) to keep your dentures white and bright going forward; they won’t look all that good otherwise. Luckily, your Michigan City dentist is here with tips and tricks to help you. Just keep reading to learn great ways to whiten your dentures from now on.

Practice Home Denture Cleaning

As you’d imagine, you can keep dentures pretty and white with daily cleaning. Your new teeth won’t darken if they don’t stain in the first place, right?

There are several fine approaches you should take to clean your dentures. For the first, remove the restorations every night and brush them gently with a non-abrasive cleaner. The next is to soak the dentures in a dentist-approved cleansing solution (as needed) while you sleep. Lastly, make sure to rinse your prosthetics between meals.

You could also avoid pigmented foods and drinks to make cleaning more effective. These items – especially coffee, red wine, and berries – will likely cause stains.

Avoid “DIY” Whitening Agents

It may sound surprising, but you can also keep dentures bright by avoiding “DIY” whitening agents. These materials don’t work well and would just harm your restorations.

In particular, what you shouldn’t use includes the following:

• Anything with chlorine solutions (household bleach, etc.)
• Various household cleaners
• Teeth whitening toothpastes
• Hard bristle toothbrushes
• Lemon juice
• Baking soda
• Metal polishing agents

The items above won’t actually clean or whiten your dentures. On the contrary, they’ll likely discolor your prosthetic teeth and cause permanent damage. Using them could even make you ill!

Consider Professional Help

When all else fails, you can always see your dentist to make your dentures bright. They’ll gladly provide you with a quality cleaning that removes any denture stains.

Professional cleaning for dentures is usually needed twice a year at most. However, don’t worry if that sounds too expensive to you. Many patients can visit a local dental school for more affordable care or find a low-cost or free dental clinic.

As you can see, you have many options for keeping your dentures white and bright. Remember to rely on them so your restored smile stays stunning!

About the Practice

Edgewood Dental is based in Michigan City, IN. Led by Drs. Haughtington, Noreika, and Havlin, our practice always strives to make smiles stronger and healthier. We meet that goal by offering preventive, cosmetic, and restorative treatments tailored to each patient’s unique needs. As a result, you can always count on us for some top-tier oral health care! For more details or to book a visit, please contact us on our website or by phone at (219)-898-4545.