Baking soda brighten teeth
Baking soda may remove some surface stain, but it cannot bleach internal tooth colour or replace fluoride toothpaste.
The short answer
Sodium bicarbonate is a mild abrasive used in some toothpastes to loosen external stain. It does not change colour within dentine or enamel. Tooth colour may come from surface deposits, dentine, trauma, medication, enamel development, decay, or restorations.
What is the direct answer?
What does this question mean?
Tooth colour may come from surface deposits, dentine, trauma, medication, enamel development, decay, or restorations. Loose powders and aggressive scrubbing can wear surfaces or irritate gums.
What can you do next?
Use an oral-care toothpaste and brush gently with a soft brush rather than rubbing powder onto teeth. Have unusual colour changes examined before whitening.
When should you seek dental care?
Seek care for a single dark tooth, pain, rough pits, white or brown patches, bleeding gums, or colour change after injury.
What should you ask the dentist?
Ask whether the colour is stain, decay, enamel change, or internal discolouration and whether whitening fits your teeth and restorations.
Frequently asked questions
Can it whiten a crown?
It may clean deposits but does not change the intrinsic colour of crown material.
Why can whitening cause sensitivity?
Whitening agents can irritate the dentine-pulp complex, depending on the tooth and method.