Metal Mouth Message Board

I'm sure that my teeth look more yellowy now than before I had braces. I have ceramic uppers and metal lowers and the uppers definitely look more yellowy. I've been cleaning my teeth after I've eaten anything and after drinking coffee, etc and I use a whitening toothpaste. Does anyone else think their teeth are more yellow than without braces? I've only had them on for two weeks. Another thing I'm worried about is what I read about the CPC mouthwashes on here. I've since switched to Fluorigard which doesn't contain CPC, but I've been using the CPC ones for the last five months or so. Has anyone got any tips and advice about staining and how to avoid it? Also, do you clean your teeth after every coffee, etc? Thanks!

Right now I only have brackets on my canines back. I have metal brackets except on my canines---those are ceramic (Inspire Ice brand). What's funny is that although I never considered my teeth white before getting braces, my canines seem to be more yellow now than before I got braces and more so than any of my other teeth. I think it's because I'm comparing my tooth color to the bracket, and my tooth looks yellow compared to it (even though the Ice brand brackets claim to be clear to match any tooth color.)

I drink about two cups of coffee in the morning, and I swish with water while drinking it. I think it helps with the staining a bit.

I have to agree with you on the yellow teeth. I have ceramic uppers on for about 10 days and I have started to notice the yellow color myself. It may just be in comparison to the brackets, but I'm not sure. I kind of think it is the cement starting to stain.

I also use whitening toothpaste and after I brush, they seem better. But the white doesn't last long. I also read somewhere that brushing after having acidic drinks/foods can cause enamel to wear away. So after eating and drinking tea or soda (I don't drink coffee), I usually swish with a little water rather than brush.

Twinkletoes wrote:Does anyone else think their teeth are more yellow than without braces?...Also, do you clean your teeth after every coffee, etc?

It depends. Sometimes, my teeth look more yellow, sometimes, they look more white. I think it depends on the lighting conditions at the time.

I used to brush my teeth after I drank or ate anything. That got kind of old, so now I just brush my teeth twice a day. I wouldn't brush my teeth after every coffee before braces, so I don't see the point in doing it now that I have braces. I may be wrong, but I don't equate having braces with a higher propensity of teeth yellowing.

lilblackdress wrote:

Twinkletoes wrote:Does anyone else think their teeth are more yellow than without braces?...Also, do you clean your teeth after every coffee, etc?

It depends. Sometimes, my teeth look more yellow, sometimes, they look more white. I think it depends on the lighting conditions at the time.

I used to brush my teeth after I drank or ate anything. That got kind of old, so now I just brush my teeth twice a day. I wouldn't brush my teeth after every coffee before braces, so I don't see the point in doing it now that I have braces. I may be wrong, but I don't equate having braces with a higher propensity of teeth yellowing.

Lighting is definately a factor...
- mariah

I was sure my teeth were turning yellow until I had some brackets repositioned and was allowed to brush and floss before the new brackets went. My naked teeth were surprisingly white. The ortho assistant said that a) the bracket causes shadows
b) the bracket segments the tooth so instead of the colour being a gradual change from top to bottom it looks way darker on the top part of the tooth

Thanks for your comments, everyone! I think I'm a bit paranoid - especially about the CPC mouthwash? I assume everyone is still using their CPC mouthrinses? I know it sounds stupid, but I can't see whether I've got ligs around my top ceramics or not.... I didn't think I had, but I think I can see a tiny band around each bracket - my husband can't see it though. I'll ask my Ortho when I go in three weeks, but I'm having curry next weekend so I guess I'll find out if they end up bright yellow! I assume brushing straight after the curry might help a bit with staining, or once the curry has hit the teeth, maybe it won't help?

As for whitening toothpastes, I'm using Colgate Total plus whitening. Is this definitely safe to use three times a day, I don't want to damage my teeth if it is abrasive? I was wondering whether to use a regular Colgate and just use the whitening at night. I'm also using Plax Whitening mouthrinse in the morning and Fluorigard at night. Any more advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

Hi,

I do not like curry but 3 weeks after being braced I ate a pot noodle (yes I was that desperate ) and it turned my bottom ligs (on metal brackets) a lovely glow in the dark yellow. prior to this incident I was using a non-whitening toothpaste. The next day I went out and bought some colgate sensation deep clean whitening with bicarbonate of soda (as recommended by this site - any toothpaste with bicarbonate in it will do)
It did not remove the stain but it certainly toned it down a bit (My other half couldn't tell it was yellow until I pointed it out)

Due to not being a curry fan I do not know if it stains more vibrant than evil pot noodle's (never again - that's what I get for being lazy )

I agree with the yellow teeth thing. I've decided its an optical illusion. They were never white to begin with but some days they look much more yellow than others - especially after the ligs were changed.

If I am really happy with my smile after all this I might get them professionally whitened after the brace comes off (if I have any money left!)

We've had a few threads about this before (search function isn't working properly so I can't find them now) and the general consensus seems to be that it's an illusion. My guess would be that a number of factors can contribute - ceramic brackets, colour of ligs used, shadows and simply looking at our teeth so much more than we did before.

My supervisor at work actually said to me once "will your teeth go back to white after the braces come off?" which made me really paranoid for a while! I don't have particularly white teeth anyway, but I think the shadows of the brackets and the colour of ligs I had on at that time made them look even less white. A few months later I had a bracket pop off after being in place for over a year. I was able to see that the bit of tooth under the bracket was exactly the same colour as the rest of my teeth, proving that they had not discoloured in any way. I do use a whitening toothpaste to help get rid of tea/coffee stains, but of course whitening toothpaste doesn't actually bleach your teeth. I'm going to do that after the braces are off, I think.

@Twinkle - I'm still using my CPC mouthwash, but only once a day instead of twice.

I have worried about the smae exact thing also! I've had my braces on for close to 18 months now (ceramic tops, metal lowers) and it does seem that they have become much more yellow tinted than before. Of course, possibly the problem was that in my old house, I had yellow walls in the bathroom, making my teeth surprising white. Lately I've noticed that they are as white as I thought. Even though mine are coming off soon, I still worried about how yellow they might be! Hope they aren't as bad as many of you have stated!

I notice that my teeth look slightly dingy coming up to an adjustment. I assume it's the dingy ligs because when I brush and get new ligs, they go back to pearly. Maybe it's the clear ligs with clear brackets...gives off the dingy glow through my brackets when my ligs turn colors.

I noticed the fantastic yellowish color after starting treatment too... What's strange is that the yellowness seems to change. One day more. One day less. However, I believe that's my imagination. The changing color has to be due to shadows, light, etc.

I have had my teeth cleaned twice by my ortho since being braced. Furthermore for the last 2 months I have been using a so-called "whitening" toothpaste with both baking soda and peroxide. This seems to work in preventing further staining which is apparantly collateral damage during the orthodontic treatment.

Btw I have metalbrackets on both uppers and lowers

Danish

Hi,
I discussed this once shortly after I was first braced...end of September. I too thought it was shadows, or that I was being too obsessed with my mouth. But, my ortho assistant told me that I had a lot of the glue(?) left on my teeth. (I have Damon 3's) If you run your tongue around the edge of your teeth, it should feel smooth. If it doesn't (mine didn't and I brush and floss religiously) then it might be the same issue. She polished them when the wire was removed and they look great again. Who knows--it might not be your imagination either?!?

I used this quite frequently when I was first braced. I'll also use it if my mouth is sore after an adjustment. The tiny bubbles are soothing to me.
It also doesn't have the sting that some mouthwashes can have.

The biggest complaint I've heard about Peroxyl is that it's sort of on the expensive side for mouthwash, but if it makes you feel better, I say use it. : - )