Everyone wants a white smile. However, not everybody has one. If you have brown, grey, or discolored teeth, it can make you, well, never want to smile again. And although the leading cause of stained teeth is food and beverages, some people get brown or grey teeth because of a medication called tetracycline.
What’s Tetracycline?
Tetracycline is a popular antibiotic that is used to treat bacterial infections throughout different parts of the body. Although tetracycline is helpful in treating patients with these types of infections, it should not be used in children under the age of eight because it can cause permanent tooth discoloration later on in life. Additionally, pregnant or nursing women should not use tetracycline because it can harm the baby.
How Does It Stain Teeth?
Unlike food and beverages that stain the surface of the teeth, tetracycline stains the dentin, which is the middle layer of the teeth— making them unresponsive to teeth whitening.
How Can Brown Teeth Be Treated?
Because brown and grey teeth can’t be treated with traditional whitening, the only way to get white teeth is with porcelain dental veneers. Dental veneers are thin pieces of porcelain that are cemented onto your natural teeth— which can give you any shape, size, or color of teeth that you want.
Although most teeth can be professionally whitened by Dr. Steven Holbrook, some of them cannot. Don’t be the person that covers up your teeth in pictures because you’re so self-conscious about them, let Dr. Steven Holbrook lighten them with either dental veneers or professional teeth whitening.
Schedule a Consultation
To learn more about teeth whitening or to schedule a consultation at our office in Albuquerque, NM, please (505) 881-1159