Recently in Teeth Category

I've been drinking way, way, WAY too much coffee lately. Not only am I now a total insomniac, but I have serious heart palpitations at night and my teeth have taken on a slight yellow tint. That said caffeine addiction is no easy thing to kick! I've used White Stripes before and had great results, but the tooth sensitivity was too much for me to bear again. An alternative I recently found out about is Luster's 1 Hour White, Tooth Whitening Light System ($39.99) which guarantees no tooth sensitivity (clinically proven), and only takes an hour (versus a week) to whiten teeth. It's also the only over-the-counter whitening product to be FDA-cleared. I tried out the system and it does leave your teeth noticeably whiter after the one-hour process. That said, while one-hour may not seem like a long time, the process is actually rather tedious (I would suggest putting together a good play-list before starting the treatment!). Read more about how the treatment works after the Jump!

I'm at the dentist as you read this so I've decided to devote today to our chompers.  I have been a loyal Sonic Care Toothbrush user for almost 10 years and no matter where I travel I take it with me-- it's been to Asia, Europe (the wattage was wrong in Paris and shorted the base) and all over the US. I've upgraded at least 4 times and change my brush heads every few months. I'd say I'm the poster girl for Sonic Care and never thought I'd find anything I like better until I discovered Supersmile Sonic Pulse toothbrush last month.

First, it's much sleeker and lighter (making the Sonic Care feel like an antiquated version of toothbrushes) and you can control the speed from "Clean", "Gentle" to "Pulse".  But the best part is the brush head. It's angled in a way that even the smallest of teeth get cleaned. I've been using it on my 4 year old and it fits right in his tiny little mouth-- he didn't scream or complain! Not only are the bristles softer, it's also much more gentle on the gums since you can control the speed (my dentist asked me to take it easy on the Sonic Care as it has been wearing out my gum line!) The system comes with a teeth whitening gel and toothpaste, too. I took it to DC with me on a recent trip and loved the easy to pack size of both tubes!

Retail price on this is $229 but get it at Drugstore.com for $159 for a limited time! Get Supersmile Sonic Pulse Toothbrush here

I'm obsessed with toothbrush germs right now-- I rinse mine and my son's brushes with hot water daily and change them often (like every couple of months).

I asked my dentist if I'm being psycho and he said rule of thumb is generally 3 months for regular tooth brushes (4 months for Sonic care or other similar brushes) but if you have any kind of gum disease, it's 4 weeks (bacteria from gum disease will get on the brush).

Confession time: What about you? How often do you change your toothbrush?

I'm all about trying to whiten my teeth now. I am planning on getting laser whitening done at my dentist's office but I figured I should aid in the effort first by doing something simpler. I have used other whitening toothpaste but it has this extra taste that leaves my tongue feeling weird. It is bad enough to make me dread brushing my teeth, which is definitely NOT a good thing. So when I was buying all my regular Darphin products, the owner of the store I got to (Temptress in Manhattan Beach) said that I "MUST TRY" this toothpaste. She told me I can bring it back if I don't like it and she'll give me my money back. OK, no risk, I like that. Plus, it's only $20. I can't say that it is turning my teeth completely white like Ross on Friends (he over whitened and his teeth glowed in the dark) but it is definitely brighter and I love the taste! No weird aftertaste, in fact, it is fruity and minty and very yummy. It is also a good idea to use whitening toothpaste before and after a dental whitening treatment, definitely after to maintain the newly sparkling pearly whites. At Neiman Marcus for $20.