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Choosing a Cosmetic Dentist: What Patients Should Know
Transcript
What Do We Know About Charcoal Toothpaste?
- Hey everybody, Dr. Lee Brown here from Freedom Dental of West Chester. Today, we’re talking a little bit about charcoal toothpaste. A few years ago, this kind of burst onto the scene. There was a lot of advertising behind it, and a lot of people were getting pinged on social media about charcoal toothpaste, how it’s healthier, makes the teeth whiter, and things like that.
- Here’s what we know and what we don’t know about charcoal toothpaste. What we don’t know are some of the long-term ramifications. With the other toothpastes that we work with and recommend, we have a long-term idea of how they affect your dental and overall health. With charcoal toothpaste, we simply don’t have the same runway.
Abrasiveness, Enamel, and Dental Restorations
- But we do know that charcoal toothpaste is very, very abrasive, and that can be a scary thing. If you already have restorations on your teeth, it’s going to roughen those up and make them more porous. They won’t look as natural, and they’re more likely to stain.
- If you don’t have anything on your teeth and you scratch them up too badly, the same thing can happen. You can wear away enamel. Enamel is the protective coating for your teeth. Number one, it looks nice, but it’s protecting what’s underneath.
Why Dr. Brown Does Not Recommend Charcoal Toothpaste
- If you remove enamel, it exposes dentin. Dentin is much softer. It’s a different color, it’s more porous, and it’s going to stain faster. Also, the exposure of dentin means it’s going to wear 10 times as fast as enamel.
- Bottom line with charcoal toothpaste, we only know what we know. But what I know right now is I’m not using it on my teeth, and I’m not recommending any of our patients use it because I believe there are other safer, more predictable options at this time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is charcoal toothpaste safe for your teeth?
Dr. Lee Brown does not currently recommend charcoal toothpaste because of concerns about its abrasiveness and the lack of the same long-term history available for other toothpastes. He explains that abrasive toothpaste can affect natural enamel as well as existing dental restorations, potentially changing their surfaces over time.
Can charcoal toothpaste damage tooth enamel?
Yes, Dr. Brown explains that excessive abrasion can wear away tooth enamel, the protective outer coating of the teeth. If enamel is removed, the dentin underneath becomes exposed. Dentin is softer, more porous, a different color, and, according to Dr. Brown, can wear considerably faster than enamel.
Can charcoal toothpaste damage crowns, veneers, or other dental restorations?
Dr. Brown warns that charcoal toothpaste can roughen existing dental restorations and make their surfaces more porous. In his explanation, this can cause restorations to look less natural and become more likely to stain. Patients with existing dental work should consider these concerns when choosing a toothpaste.
Does charcoal toothpaste make your teeth whiter?
Charcoal toothpaste is frequently advertised as a way to make teeth look whiter, but Dr. Brown focuses on the potential consequences of its abrasiveness. Wearing or roughening the tooth surface may expose more porous dentin, which has a different color and may stain more readily than enamel.
Does Dr. Lee Brown recommend charcoal toothpaste?
No. Based on what is currently known, Dr. Brown says he does not use charcoal toothpaste himself or recommend it to patients at Freedom Dental of West Chester. He believes there are other toothpaste options available that currently offer a safer and more predictable choice for patients.
