Homemade hydrogen peroxide mouthwash?

Want to naturally whiten your teeth ? I was hanging out with a friend over the weekend and he started telling me — almost out of the blue — about how awesome hydrogen peroxide was for your mouth and teeth, giving him a pearly bright smile. Oh yes! I remember how the conversation started. I was telling him how I spent $500 last month on the dentist to fill 2 cavities.

He’s been using hydrogen peroxide for a while now, rinsing with it about 2 times per day to strengthen and whiten his teeth, as an alternative to expensive teeth whitening procedures. He said that the peroxide actually fortifies cavities (essentially, repairing them) and hardens the enamel on your teeth to prevent cavities from forming.

It’s funny, because a few months ago I heard a few actors in a movie talking about how hydrogen peroxide is good to gargle with to help fight mouth infections and sore throats.

So, after my friend’s advice and remembering the movie… I decided to look further into the hydrogen peroxide issue today. And from what I found, it’s true.

Hydrogen Peroxide Uses (H2O2)

Hydrogen peroxide (3% hydrogen peroxide) helps with the following:

• Strengthens teeth
• Fight mouth bacteria
• Heal canker sores
• Soak and wash vegetables / fruits in to kill bacteria and neutralize chemicals
• Brush teeth with for extra protection
• Soak toothbrush in for a few seconds to disinfect (daily)

Of course, don’t be surprised if your dentist tells you this is bullshit . Why? Because they don’t want you taking care of your own teeth with “your own” natural remedies. They want you to have cavities and they want your teeth to be black as dirt. Why? Because that makes them more money.

Here’s what you do to whiten teeth naturally with hydrogen peroxide

1. Clean your toothbrush with hydrogen peroxide to disinfect it
2. Rinse 30 seconds – 1 minute with 3% hydrogen peroxide
3. Brush your teeth in up and down motion

You’ll have to experiment with the hydrogen peroxide usage. Some people use it a few times a week, some people use it 2 times a day. Some people rinse for 30 seconds and others hold it in their mouth for 10 minutes. I’m going to start off with aforementioned guidelines once a day and see how it goes. Cheers to that new bright smile! Here’s a teeth whitening kit you may like.

Here’s some additional information and techniques on natural teeth whitening.

Update: 7/5/2009 – I recently read that hydrogen peroxide can weaken the filling in your cavities. I suggest looking into the usage more before using with cavity fillings.