Is it possible for me to whiten my teeth at home with lemons? I read about it on a natural health website, but wanted to verify before I wasted a bunch of lemons or, even worse, damaged my teeth. I have not had much success with the over the counter whitening kits and I really want white teeth but my dentist only does Zoom, which is out of my budget.

Megan

Dear Megan,

I am so glad you wrote. It was very wise on your part to verify something you read on the internet. While lemons could temporarily make your teeth look a bit whiter, eventually they will actually end up looking darker. This is because lemons have citrus acid. When that acid gets onto your tooth enamel it will micro etch the surface of your teeth. Those etches will cause your teeth to pick up stains much faster. With continued use, you could weaken the enamel of your teeth. You will find that people who suck on lemons have the same problem.

This is the same issue that happens to patients who are suffering from bulimia. The acidic nature of vomiting means that their teeth are slowly wearing away because of all the acid.

If you are determined to use an over the counter whitening kit, Crest Whitestrips do work, but you have to buy a LOT of kits to get the same amount of teeth whitening you could with a dentist.

If you want professional strength teeth whitening but do not want Zoom, you could go to another dentist just to get your teeth whitening kit and get started then return to your dentist for your regular dental care. Be aware that most dentists will make you get a cleaning done before they will whiten your teeth. This is to ensure there are no problems with your teeth. It’s also to make sure there is no plaque that can lead to splotchy results. You can just tell them that you are happy with your dentist for your regular care, but do want to whiten your teeth.

This blog is brought to you by Duluth, GA Dentist Dr. David Marion.