Your smile is a great way to brighten someone’s day and leave a lasting impression. But if your teeth are stained and have lost their luster sometimes smiling is the last thing you want to do. While there are many products available that will whiten your teeth almost all of them contain harsh chemicals. When Crest Whitestrips first came out I was so excited to try them, and while I loved the results that they gave me I wasn’t thrilled that my teeth and gums hurt for several hours after I used them.
If you are tired of putting chemicals into your mouth in order to achieve a whiter smile keep on reading. I am happy to share with you the amazing results I had by using activated charcoal to whiten my teeth. These photo’s have not been edited in anyway to make my teeth appear whiter.
After 7 days of using activated charcoal in combination with hydrogen peroxide for a mouthwash the results were amazing!
WHAT IS ACTIVATED CHARCOAL AND HOW DOES IT WHITEN YOUR TEETH?
Best known for it’s ability to keep poison from being absorb into the body if it is digested, activated charcoal is carbon that has been treated with oxygen. The treatment results in a highly porous charcoal. Activated Charcoal is made by heating coconut shells in the absence of air. The partly burned shells are then granulated to a size that provides for optimum absorption.
Activated charcoal is amazing at whitening teeth because of its adsorption qualities. Yes I did say adsorption, not to be confused with absorption. The perfect example would be drinking a glass of water = absorption vs. spilling a glass of water on your skin = adsorption. Activated charcoal is really good with it’s adsorption of tannins. Tannins are in the food and beverages we consume that stain our teeth (wine, tea,cola, sauces, sweets,etc) and activated charcoal is remarkably efficient and fast at adsorbing them.
It even has the ability to be helpful at adjusting the pH balance in the mouth. This can be helpful for preventing cavities and bad breath. Plus after you brush your teeth with activated charcoal your mouth will feel super clean and you won’t be able to stop running your tongue against your teeth.
HOW TO USE ACTIVATED CHARCOAL TO WHITEN YOUR TEETH
Activated charcoal is very messy! You have been warned. Use with caution when brushing your teeth. It will not stain your teeth or skin but it can be hard to clean up if spilled.
1) Brush and clean your teeth like you would normally.
2) If using activated charcoal from a capsule, twist it open (I like to do this over the garbage can) and place contents inside mouth. Don’t swallow. You can throw away the capsule.
3) Using your tooth brush give your teeth a good scrubbing. Your mouth will be very black. Don’t worry it will wash out. I brushed my teeth for about 1 minute with the charcoal. And because I love you all so much here is what my mouth looked liked each and every time. 
4) Get ready for the really messy part now. Have a glass of water nearby that you can rinse your mouth with. This will take several attempts unit the water runs out clean in your sink. Make sure to rinse off your toothbrush as well.
5) Lastly I used hydrogen peroxide to give a final rinse to my mouth and teeth. I figured if I am ditching the typical way most people whiten their teeth I might as well switch up my mouthwash at the same time.
And that is it. Pretty simple and very cost effective. For the activated charcoal capsules and hydrogen peroxide I spent just under $10. I will be able to use both of these products for a very long time before they run out.
THE RESULTS
I think the pictures speak for themselves. I was very impressed with how easy this was and while I don’t think I will be doing this everyday I can see myself doing this at least once a week and maybe more often if I have a special event planned.
I was amazed in the difference that only a few days made but I decided to continue on with my experiment for the full week. Again these pictures have not been edited to make my teeth appear whiter.
If you want to try this out for yourself here are the products I used:
Make sure and take pictures too! It is fun to see how much of a difference this made in the appearance of my teeth and how much cleaner they felt after using the activated charcoal.
Do you think you will try this?
Maybe this would be cool for me. I have tried those whitening strips, and I will be damned, that thing makes my teeth hurt SO bad!
Cheri, This did not hurt my teeth at all. I totally understand what you are saying about the whitening strips.
Thanks for doing a post about this! I bought the capsules from vitacost recently but I haven’t tried it yet. You’ve inspired me to actually do it!
Your welcome! It is really easy but messy 🙂 have fun!
Thanks for sharing girl! I am always on the hunt for new ways to whiten my teeth – naturally!
You are welcome Ashley!
Thanks for sharing — love finding something that’s tried and tested!! I have tried the whitening strips time after time and every time I have to quit a few days in because of how harsh they are on my mouth. Owie! I may have to try this method. 🙂