How I Whitened My Teeth With Charcoal

I’ll blame it on all the coffee I drink, but my teeth are not as white and pearly as I would like. It can be frustrating to not feel comfortable smiling with teeth in photos! I tried getting Zoom Whitening done at the dentist over the summer and I hated it. Not only was it excruciatingly painful, but the whiteness only stuck around for a few weeks. I gave up hope for a while, but recently I started seeing some girls online talking about an interesting home remedy that brightens your smile. You know how I love experimenting with interesting beauty hacks, so of course I had to give it a try! The method involves brushing your teeth using activated charcoal. I purchased capsules like these, which you have to pull apart each one and dump the powder inside on your toothbrush. You can also buy a jar of the loose powder like this which is more convenient.

So why does it work? Charcoal is incredibly absorptive. In fact, hospitals and veterinarians (I can personally attest to the latter) use it on patients who have consumed poison in order to absorb the toxin and remove it from the body. For this reason, it works on our teeth as well. It absorbs bacteria and staining, and makes them whiter as a result.

All you have to do is wet your toothbrush (use a cheap one because it will get a bit gross), pour a small amount of charcoal onto it, and brush for 3-5 minutes. Now comes the messy and extremely unattractive part…Once you start brushing, dark grey drool is going to get EVERYWHERE! I tried a few different methods (having a spit cup handy, keeping my head over the sink) but found that brushing while I was in the shower ended up being the tidiest option.

After brushing with charcoal just once, I noticed that my teeth were already noticeably whiter. It was pretty shocking! So I continued using this method every night for three nights. After the third night, my teeth looked blindingly white! It was so tempting to continue every night, but charcoal is very abrasive on the teeth and if used too much, it can wear away the enamel. This can leave tooth enamel susceptible to deterioration and erosion, which can lead to sensitivity and cavities. Would I recommend this method? I hesitate to do so because it is not great for the health of your teeth. My personal opinion is that it is probably okay to do it a couple of times a year, but of course I am not a dentist or an expert. I also read that you can achieve a similar effect without any damage by simply dabbing charcoal onto the surface of the teeth and letting it sit for a few minutes before rinsing with water. I have not tried this, but it sounds like a safe option if you are curious about this home remedy but are concerned about the health of your teeth.

I’m happy to be able feel more confident about my smile! Do you think you would try this method?

Dress: instyledress

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