Lemon juice is way more than just a flavor enhancer that makes your drink refreshing with a tinge of sourness.
Although sucking on a slice of lemon makes your teeth feel weird, lemon can actually help you treat many oral problems and avoid going to the dentist.
The acid in this fruit helps destroy bacteria in the mouth, thus preventing infections and maintaining your oral health. It reduces the yellow tinge accumulated on teeth, toothaches, heals bleeding gums, and eliminates bad breath.
Nevertheless, if you use them too frequently they might even damage your teeth. So, moderation is the key.
In this article, you’ll find out how to use lemons to treat different teeth and gum problems.
1. Whiten Teeth
The main causes of your yellow teeth are coffee, tea, wine, and smoking. As you may already know, whitening your teeth can cost you a lot.
But, with the help of two cheap, natural ingredients you can make a paste that will eliminate the stains of your teeth and give you a perfectly white smile.
The first one is lemon. This fruit is a natural bleaching agent that will clean your teeth from stains and make them whiter than before.
Ingredients
- 2 or 3 tbsp. of lemon juice
- 1 tbsp. of salt
Mix the ingredients to form a paste. Then, brush your teeth with it gently, and let it stay for a few minutes before rinsing completely with pure water. Do this twice weekly for optimal results.
Note: Don’t make this treatment more than twice a week since lemon contains citric acid that can damage your tooth enamel and make your teeth even more yellow.
2. Eliminates Bad Breath
Eating garlic or onion is not the only reason for your bad breath. Your breath can smell even when your mouth is dry, or when the production of your saliva is reduced. This is because saliva helps destroy oral bacteria.
Luckily, lemon can also help kill your oral bacteria as well as prevent dry mouth, thus eliminating your bad breath. This is because of its powerful antimicrobial properties.
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp. of lemon juice
After eating, use some lemon juice to gargle and then spit it out. Wash your mouth afterward to prevent the high acidity of lemon juice from damaging your tooth enamel.
3. Strengthens Gums
This fruit can help strengthen your teeth and gums. Its high levels of vitamin C and anti-inflammatory properties will also heal your bleeding gums.
Ingredients
- 1 glass of water
- 2 tbsp. of lemon juice
Add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to a glass of water.
Rinse your mouth after eating your meals with a solution of water and lemon juice. Also, you can treat your bleeding gums by applying lemon juice directly onto the gums.
4. Alleviates Toothache
Tooth decay is the most common cause of toothaches. But, thanks to vitamin C in lemon, you can treat infections and reduce your toothache using nothing but lemon juice.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp. of lemon juice
Soak some lemon juice with a cotton ball and dab it on the aching area. Then, just wash your mouth with water.
However, the strong acidic content of lemon can cause tooth damage if left for 10-15 minutes on your teeth.