How to Remove Tea Stains from Teeth

Co-authored by Tu Anh Vu, DMD

Last Updated: May 30, 2021 References

If you love drinking tea every day, but hate the surface stains on your teeth, there’s still hope. You won’t have to quit drinking your afternoon tea. In fact, there are various methods of whitening your teeth that include home remedies such as charcoal and fruits. If that’s not up your alley, you can always use whitening strips, whitening toothpaste or even augment your diet with stain-removing foods. Take precautions with more abrasive whitening methods, and your teeth should remain stain free and healthy.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Using Homemade Remedies

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Rinse with 3% hydrogen peroxide to remove stains. Peroxide is an antibacterial agent that can clean the entire mouth and gums. To make an oral mouth rinse with it, mix an 8 ounce cup of water with the same amount of hydrogen peroxide. Swish for one minute and rinse.^{[1]
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- Baking soda may also be used in a DIY toothpaste by mixing a small amount of baking soda with water to make a paste that removes more plaque from your teeth.^{[2]
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- To use the baking soda paste to safely whiten your teeth, brush for 15 seconds. Because baking soda is a gritty substance, it is abrasive to tooth enamel. The paste should have a runny consistency, so make sure that you mixed in enough hydrogen peroxide. Rub the paste on your teeth for a minute and rinse thoroughly with water.^{[3]
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2
Make a paste from strawberries to whiten your teeth. Mash up strawberries for teeth strengthening and whitening if you drink a lot of tea. When mashing, crush four or five strawberries, rub the mixture on your teeth and then rinse with water.^{[4]
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- A more thorough method for using strawberries is by mixing them mashed up with baking soda, spreading the mix on your teeth with a toothbrush, leave it on for five minutes and then rinse it off. Because strawberries do contain sugar, brush your teeth with regular toothpaste right after this routine.^{[5]
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3
Brush your teeth with activated charcoal to remove stains. How does something as messy as charcoal whiten your teeth? Activated charcoal often used on poison victims in the hospital, and the same absorbent properties that allows it to bind to poisons in the stomach also lets it pull out stains, bacteria and toxins from the mouth. You should use charcoal once daily, three days in a row, or five days in a row for more severely stained teeth.^{[6]
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- First, use an old toothbrush, because it’s going to get messy from the charcoal, and you don’t want to sacrifice your good toothbrush. With the toothbrush placed on a paper towel, put the charcoal powder on the bristles and start brushing. ^{[7]
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- Brush 3-5 minutes, spitting into a cup, rather than the sink, and thoroughly rinse your mouth with water. Dump your cup into the toilet to avoid a mess in the sink.^{[8]
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Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Whitening Your Teeth

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Brush your teeth with whitening toothpastes. These are one of the most widely used and effective forms of teeth whitening with their active ingredients being polishers, abrasives and gentle chemical bleaching agents. Whitening toothpastes aren’t instant, and it takes time and patience when brushing with them.^{[9]
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Research source} Be consistent by brushing twice a day, and you will see the benefits within 2 to 6 weeks.^{[10]
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- Some whitening toothpastes work by employing an ingredient called chemical blue covarine that sticks to the surface of the teeth and creates an optical illusion of whiteness.^{[11]
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  Mayo Clinic
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2
Use teeth whitening strips to remove tea stains. These flexible little strips are made out of polyethylene, which is an elastic type of plastic. They contain peroxide or bleach to whiten your teeth. Think about when you wash your white shirts in the laundry, and you use bleach to get all the stains out. Whitening strips work on your teeth in the same way to remove tea stains from your pearly whites.^{[12]
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- Whitening strips are a more affordable option than getting your teeth whitened at the dentist, because insurance usually doesn’t cover whitening.^{[13]
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- Follow the instructions that come with whitening strips. One thing to remember is that just because they whiten your teeth doesn’t mean they can replace good old fashioned brushing. Always brush your teeth before using whitening strips. If you don’t, plaque will get trapped under the strips and cause more problems than just discoloration. Not to mention it could render whitening strips useless.^{[14]
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Brush with an electric toothbrush to whiten your teeth. Thanks to their speed and power, they can pick up more plaque and scrub more stains with less effort than a manual toothbrush.^{[15]
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Tu Anh Vu, DMD. Dentist. Personal interview. 7 May 2020.} An electric toothbrush will get your teeth whiter in a shorter amount of time than your average one.^{[16]
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- With a manual toothbrush, you’re able to do 300 strokes per minute. Some electric or battery powered toothbrushes can get anywhere from 3,000 times a minute to 4,000, so your teeth whiten faster.^{[17]
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Go to a dentist for professional whitening. Dentists will do professional whitening, but because it’s cosmetic, it is usually expensive and not covered by insurance. If you choose this route for stain removal, the dentist will make an appointment for you to have your teeth bleached.
- The dental team will place a gel or rubber shield over your gums to protect them from the whitening agents.
- Using a custom tray for your teeth, the dentist will fill it with the whitening product, usually hydrogen peroxide or carbamide peroxide.^{[18]
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Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Preventing Stains

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Drink tea through a straw to prevent staining. Anytime you drink anything dark, like red wine, coffee, or tea, it can stain your teeth. To prevent that, drink cold or hot tea through a straw, and avoid swishing it in your mouth and around your teeth.^{[19]
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Tu Anh Vu, DMD. Dentist. Personal interview. 7 May 2020.}
- In addition, rinse your mouth with water or do a quick brush of your teeth every time you drink a dark beverage like tea. You don't even have to use toothpaste—just brush enough to remove anything that could stick to your teeth and leave stains.
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Use milk or cream in your tea to minimize stains. A protein in milk called casein binds to tannins in tea. Tannins are responsible for the color and flavor of most teas. Because tea lightens when you add milk, thanks to the casein, you reduce the risk of staining your teeth.^{[20]
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- Be aware of tannin levels, because most teas contain some tannin, however, black tea has the highest levels.^{[21]
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3
Eat oranges to prevent tea stains. Oranges are acidic, but what a lot of people don’t know is that their acidity is beneficial and actually neutralizes the acid in your mouth that causes decay and staining.^{[22]
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Eat abrasive, fibrous foods to scrub out stains. Munching on fibrous roots, such as peelu fibers can remove tooth stains.
- Almonds, seeds and other nuts are also abrasive enough to remove and prevent tea stains in teeth.^{[23]
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5
Eat apples to clean your teeth. Remember that an apple a day keeps the doctor away? Well, eating apples also increase saliva production due to their higher water content. Increased saliva washes away bacteria that causes stains and decay.^{[24]
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- You can also chew sugar-free gum to help flush the stains away from your teeth. The gum will cause your teeth to produce more saliva, which will help protect your teeth.^{[25]
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  Tu Anh Vu, DMD. Dentist. Personal interview. 7 May 2020.}

Expert Q&A
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Question

What are some of your top recommendations on how to prevent stains on your teeth?

Tu Anh Vu, DMD
Board Certified Dentist
Dr. Tu Anh Vu is a board certified dentist who runs her private practice, Tu's Dental, in Brooklyn, New York. Dr. Vu helps adults and kids of all ages get over their anxiety with dental phobia. Dr. Vu has conducted research related to finding the cure for Kaposi Sarcoma cancer and has presented her research at the Hinman Meeting in Memphis. She received her undergraduate degree from Bryn Mawr College and a DMD from the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine.

Tu Anh Vu, DMD

Board Certified Dentist

Expert Answer

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Any time you drink anything dark, it can stain your teeth if you don't swish with water or brush your teeth right away. If you can't do that, try chewing sugar-free gum to neutralize acid and remove stains from your teeth. Also, drink all of your dark drinks like coffee through a straw so they won't have as much contact with your teeth.

Warnings

Don’t overuse baking soda or anything acidic, as these can strip the enamel from your teeth.

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Too much hydrogen peroxide will burn your mouth.

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