Close to a year ago I started getting these mysterious brown stains on my teeth. My dentist could not figure out what was causing them. I finally went to see a natural dentist who diagnosed them as fluoride stains. I couldn’t imagine how I could be getting fluoride stains at this age, but then I read the tea I drink is fluorinated, so that must be it. Can you recommend a dentist who can do dental bonding to cover these, please? I am 60 years old and am suddenly embarrassed to smile.

Lynette

Dear Lynette,

I am puzzled at your dentist’s inability to diagnose this, as well as surprised at the natural dentist’s diagnosis. Let’s start with the natural dentist. Fluorosis stains are caused by ingesting too much fluoride while your teeth are still forming. There is no way to get fluorosis stains as an adult. A lot of natural dentists are against fluoride, which may be why he or she said that but it shows a fundamental misunderstanding about both dentistry and fluoride.

Now that we have crossed off the fluoride cause, what is it actually? At your age, there are two types of brown stains you can be getting. The first is external. These should be able to be polished off by your dentist rather easily. I would also recommend using Supersmile toothpaste. It is very good at removing external stains. Yet, unlike other whitening toothpastes, it does not cause damage to your enamel.

The second type of stain is internal. Our teeth absorb pigments from food and drink. You mentioned you drink tea. This beverage, along with coffee, is well known for its staining pigments, so that would be the top suspect in my detective notebook.

The solution to these internal stains is bleaching, not bonding. If you want to get rid of them fast, I recommend Zoom Whitening over take-home trays.

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