Vegans have better teeth!

We all know a plant based diet is healthiest for us, but did you know it is also best for your teeth? Here are some incentives for eating vegan, and tips on keeping your smile sparkling!

Foods That Clean Teeth
There are some foods that stain teeth and there are other foods that can naturally clean and whiten your teeth. Eating fresh crunchy veggies and fruits such as: carrots, broccoli, celery, apples, strawberries, and cucumbers can actually help naturally whiten your teeth. To clean your teeth with strawberries before you eat them,  cut a strawberry in half, and rub each half over your teeth and gums. Strawberries naturally help whiten teeth and remove plaque as well. Foods like spinach, lettuce and broccoli prevent staining by creating a film on the teeth that acts as a barrier to stains.

Foods That Stain Teeth
We are all aware that certain foods can stain our teeth. But what you may not have considered is these stains diminish our smile and reverse the efforts we have done to get our teeth their whitest. Daily brushing to maintain your white smile may not be enough if you frequently consume the things that cause your teeth to stain. First
let’s understand the culprits:

• Foods That Stain Teeth - Blueberries, cherries, blackberries, berry pie, soy sauce, curry, red sauces, ketchup, turmeric, and mustard
• Drinks That Stain Teeth - Coffee, tea, red wine, cola and some fruit juices
• Substances That Stain Teeth - Tobacco (cigarettes, cigars and chewing tobacco), Bacteria (from rich, sugary foods) and some medications such as tetracycline.
• Other Things The Effect Tooth Stains – Extremely hot or cold liquids. These are dangerous to your white smile because they change the temperature of your teeth. This temperature change (hot and cold cycling) causes teeth to expand and contract, allowing stains to penetrate your teeth.
• Foods that are slightly acidic. These foods open up the pores of the tooth enamel (the covering over the teeth) allowing stains to more easily move into your teeth.

Remember that any food or beverage that can stain a white t-shirt can stain your teeth. Plus depending on the strength of your teeth and the enamel, you can be individually more sensitive to staining. 

 Choose the right foods. 

• Decrease or eliminate meat; beef, pork, veal, chicken, seafood, venison, & game contain particular bacteria that adhere stubbornly to tooth enamel and as the protein breaks down it also breaks down the enamel, leaving teeth vulnerable to stains and to decay.

•  In addition to eliminating meat, try to eliminate dairy from your diet; high consumption of  animal  protein actually inhibits absorption of calcium, causing the body to release stores of calcium from the bones and teeth in response to the lower blood calcium levels, leading to tooth decay, Osteoporosis, and Osteopenia.
• Normally, our mouth covers tooth enamel with a clear colorless layer of protein known as the pellicle. Animal protein destroys the pellicle, so a vegan diet is healthier for your teeth, too!
•  Chomp down on that garnish of parsley after your meal to revamp your breath. The high content of chlorophyll in parsley works as a natural mouth deodorizer. Munch on a sprig of parsley any time your breath feels a tad stale or add this kitchen staple to your meals regularly to ward off nagging bad breath. This cooling herb will leave your mouth feeling refreshed and odor-free, and the chlorophyll  actually counteracts onion and garlic that would otherwise linger for hours.

Tips to keep your teeth whiter

• Don’t Smoke. Tobacco is one of the biggest culprits in ruining white smiles. The tar and nicotine in tobacco quickly stains teeth yellow. Chewing tobacco can even be worse. The tar and nicotine maintain longer contact with the teeth and stains teeth deeper.
• Eat plenty of fresh fruits and veggies that don't stain your  teeth, better yet go vegan! (See above)
• Limit the intake of foods that stain your teeth.
• Try cutting down on the types of drinks that stain your teeth or try drinking them with a straw to reduce the amount of time they are in contact with your teeth.
• Try not to combine tobacco or foods that stain with extremely hot or cold liquids. When your teeth expand and contract from the temperature change, stains are more apt to penetrate your teeth, making them harder to remove.
• Brush immediately following the consumption of food and drinks that stain. Remove stains before they have time to set in.