My three and a half year old son has bad stains on his teeth. He has juice maybe once a day and brushes his teeth morning and night - is there anything I do anything to lessen this discolouration on his teeth?
Michelle
Hi Michelle,
Discolouration of teeth can be caused by many things. Sometimes the discolouration is extrinsic – this means it is on the surface of teeth and can be cleaned off leaving an intact tooth underneath. This can be caused by dark food stuffs (eg tea), water or supplements rich in heavy metals (eg iron) or can be caused by bacteria in the mouth that produce coloured plaque (chromogenic bacteria). Extrinsic staining is difficult to brush off at home but can be easily removed by a dentist or hygienist and is not usually harmful to the teeth. Staining of teeth can also be the early stages of decay. When a tooth begins to go bad initially there is a white lesion, then a brown area and finally a cavity forms. I would recommend that you get the discolouration checked by a dentist.
