WineLife365

As a red wine drinker, I’ve had many “purple teeth” moments.  You know - that hideous and frightening smile that makes one question if you’re using Hedley and Wyche toothpaste.

For some wine drinkers this staining effect isn’t so bad, but for others it can be rather embarrassing – not to mention rather gross for the people seated across from you.  Unfortunately for me, after drinking several glasses of red wine my teeth look pretty hideous – but I’m aware of this monstrous affect. That’s why, when my wife and I have dinner with folks that I’m not super chummy with, I’m pretty careful with how much red wine I consume so I don’t scare them away before getting to know them a little bit better.

However, most people are not aware that drinking white wines can also turn your pearly whites a dingy color too.  Research has shown that acidity found in many beverages is the staining culprit.  Acid erodes the enamel on your teeth that causes rough spots and grooves to form and leaves your teeth vulnerable for stains to develop.  Even though white wines themselves don’t have much color, the acids they contain are enough to rough up your tooth enamel and leave them exposed to staining.  This acidic erosion isn’t just a problem with red and white wine though.  Drinking lots of citrus drinks like orange and grapefruit juice, lemonade, sports and energy drinks, and sodas can also stain a person’s teeth.

I’ve ask my dentist and hygienist several times what I can do to eliminate the staining.  Besides the unthinkable of not drinking wine and coffee all together, they recommended that I use a whitening toothpaste with baking soda in it.  I can honestly say that using this type of toothpaste at the end of an evening of drinking wine and after drinking coffee in the morning, my teeth look reasonably white…others may not agree. 

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