A dentist has revealed which of four popular drinks stains teeth the most and said he was “surprised” by the results.
Dr. Miles Madison, a dentist in Beverly Hills, California, took four extracted teeth and soaked them for 10 days in coffee, tea, Coca-Cola or red wine.
Posting the results on TikTok, Dr Madison, who goes by the name “the father of gums” on social media, said he was “not prepared” to see the shocking effect red wine had on a tooth.
Lifting the cup, he revealed a tooth that had been almost completely stained purple by the alcoholic beverage.
‘The red wine stained the entire tooth. It stained the enamel, the root, everything,’ he said.
“Red wine definitely causes the most stains.”
A cup of Coca Cola also had a dramatic effect on a tooth, not only staining it a dark shade but corroding its structure creating small “pits.”
Dr. Madison attributed this to the acidic properties of the fizzy favorite.
A dentist has revealed which of four popular drinks stains teeth the most and says he is “surprised” by the results.
Revealing the result, he said: “Not only did the coke stain the tooth very dark, but it also caused these little holes because the acid ate away at the enamel and also some of the root structure.”
Tea beats coffee in the battle of morning drinks, with the former producing the least amount of stains.
Revealing the result for the coffee, Dr. Madison showed how the crown had turned a yellow hue and the root a deep brown.
“It’s much darker than when we started and, especially, the root surface, which doesn’t have as much mineral as the enamel, became very stained,” he said.
In contrast, the results for the tea, although similar, were not as dramatic and the root took on a lighter brown hue.
‘It also stained, but not as much (as coffee). “You can see that the root was stained a lot more than the enamel,” Dr. Madison said.
Social media users said they, too, were surprised by the results.
“Oh hell no but these are my favorite drinks,” one wrote.
“Guess next time I’ll order water,” wrote another.
Other users suggested Dr. Madison repeat the experiment with different drinks, such as beer, to which the dentist responded that he would try it “next time.”
The experiment does not reflect real-life conditions, since people do not usually soak their teeth in a liquid for 10 hours straight.
However, it is well known that popular beverages such as coffee, tea and wine, as well as other habits such as smoking, stain teeth.
In most cases, stains are a purely cosmetic issue and do not indicate any problem with the teeth themselves and can remove most stains.
But persistent yellow teeth may be a sign that people brush their teeth too quickly after consuming acidic foods like fruits or drinks like Coca Cola.
This is because acidic elements can weaken the white enamel on your teeth for a short period of time.
If the teeth are brushed in this weakened state, it can reveal the slightly yellower part of the tooth called dentin, changing the overall tone.
Certain medications, such as the antibiotic tetracycline, are also known to change tooth color due to an interaction with saliva that causes teeth to turn brown or gray.
While most tooth color changes are nothing to worry about, dentists recommend people keep an eye out for one change in particular.
They say that if a tooth, or sometimes several teeth, turn gray, it may be a sign of nerve damage, and this should be reported to a dentist.