Although most cigarette boxes carry a warning “Smoking Kills” but this often does not encourage smokers to stop. However, smoking can have serious consequences to oral health and can cause stained teeth, bad breath, gum disease and also increase the chance of losing teeth.

So you've been smoking for years and haven't thought about the damage smoking does to your teeth? How can dentists tell you're a smoker just by looking at your teeth? The answer is your teeth will have yellow or black stains caused by nicotine and in most cases smokers have bad breath.

How does Tobacco & Nicotine Stain Teeth?

Long-term smoking causes teeth to be stained by the smoke and teeth will start to turn  yellow or possibly black and affect cause the oral environment to become disrupted. So is it possible to remove tobacco and nicotine stains just by brushing teeth? The answer is no! Even if you choose toothpastes that are for smokers this will not remove the stains. What methods are available to remove stains?

1. Ultrasonic Scaling & Dental Sandblasting

For tobacco stains ultrasonic scaling is used along with dental sandblasting. Ultrasonic scaling is used to remove the buildup of dental calculus and bacterial plaque and dental sandblasting is used to remove stains. Therefore, it’s important for smokers to choose professional dental cleaning to remove the stains.   

2. Quit Smoking

Even after a professional scaling if you continue to smoke the stains will continue to form. Therefore we advise patients to have their teeth professionally cleaned once a year or we suggest they quit smoking.   

A professional dental clean is a must for long-term smokers. Consequences of not taking care of teeth can have serious repercussions such as bad breath, gum disease, gum recession, teeth sensitivity and possibly the loss of teeth.