No matter where you go, every brand of oral hygiene product seems to have come out with an activated charcoal toothpaste. You’re curious as to whether this even works. It’s especially suspicious because it seems to have just popped up as a dental craze out of nowhere. How can something so dark whiten your teeth? It seems rather counterintuitive. Read on to find out whether or not this new active ingredient in countless oral hygiene products used for teeth whitening in Greenwood actually achieves what it’s advertised to.
What is Activated Charcoal?
Activated charcoal isn’t the same product that you buy to light up your grill. It’s a fine black powder that consists of ground up coconut shells, peat, coal, olive pits, bone char, or sawdust. When it sits at incredibly high temperatures, it becomes “activated,” which makes it more porous and changes its structure. This is the main difference between the charcoal briquettes that go in your barbecue and the stuff that’s used as an ingredient in your new toothpaste.
Can Activated Charcoal Actually Whiten Your Teeth?
Activated charcoal has long been used to help expel harmful toxins and gases from people’s bodies. Only recently did it make it to your social media feed. Famous bloggers and YouTube personalities tested using activated charcoal on their teeth to whiten them and found that it actually does work. Because it’s so absorbent, it’s able to trap impurities and harmful substances that linger on your teeth. Social influencers also agree that it’s a great homeopathic solution to over-the-counter teeth whitening kits that contain chemicals as well.
Is Activated Charcoal Safe To Use On Teeth?
Depending on who you talk to, your answer to whether activated charcoal actually works will differ. With bloggers and online personalities, they’ll enthusiastically say “yes!” but with dentists, they’ll say “yes” with an added caveat. Although activated charcoal can whiten your teeth, your cosmetic dentist in Greenwood advises you to not jump ahead of yourself. This substance is fairly abrasive, so using it too often can lead to enamel erosion, which leaves your pearly whites vulnerable to developing oral health problems. If you do plan on using oral hygiene products that contain activated charcoal, be sure to consult with a professional beforehand.
It’s no lie that store-bought whitening kits can also be bad for your teeth, so what options does that leave you with to restore the brightness of your smile? Professional teeth whitening administered by your dentist uses ADA-approved, tested, and proven-safe products that achieve fast results. In a single appointment with your dentist, they can brighten your smile by multiple shades. This way, you won’t have to worry about causing permanent damage to your enamel!
About the Practice
At Tylan Creek Family Dentistry, we offer the expertise and knowledge of six experienced dentists. We want to make dental care easy for our patients, which is why we offer comprehensive care under one roof. That means that whether they’re looking to get a routine checkup and cleaning or if they’d like to improve the look of their smile with professional teeth whitening, we’ve got them covered. If you have any questions or would like to schedule a consultation for a cosmetic treatment, visit our website or call 864-407-4455.