How to Whiten Your Teeth Cheaply with Hydrogen Peroxide as a Mouthwash

Almost every household has a bottle of hydrogen peroxide lurking beneath their bathroom or kitchen sink. While everyone knows that hydrogen peroxide is useful for preventing infection from scrapes and cuts due to its antiseptic and antimicrobial properties, many people ignore the fact that hydrogen peroxide is an effective mouthwash and teeth whitening agent. I have been using hydrogen peroxide as a part of my daily oral hygiene regimen and have noticed a discernible difference in the whiteness of my teeth and the overall health of my mouth.

Hydrogen peroxide can be found in the pharmacy section of most drugstores in a dark brown opaque bottle. The reason that it is kept in an opaque brown bottle is that light will actually cause the hydrogen peroxide to break down and weaken its potency. In any case, just look for a brown bottle with a white cap, which is the ubiquitous way of storing hydrogen peroxide around the country. While this should not be a problem if you just buy your hydrogen peroxide from the local drugstore like Walgreens or Longs Drugs, it is important to get a 3% hydrogen peroxide solution, which is the maximum potency that is generally accepted to be safe for biological and health purposes. Any hydrogen peroxide sold in a drugstore should be 3%, but double check to make sure that you have not inadvertently purchased a bottle of hydrogen peroxide for industrial use instead of household use.

Hydrogen peroxide is useful as a mouthwash due to its antiseptic properties, the same properties that render hydrogen peroxide effective in preventing infection in cuts and scrapes. Hydrogen peroxide is also an effective whitening agent, and you will notice that almost every home teeth whitening kit has hydrogen peroxide listed as one of its active ingredients. Most of those home teeth whitening kits are ridiculously expensive however, since most oral hygiene manufacturers are trying to cash in on the fad. It is very easy to accomplish the nearly the same result yourself, however, with a much more affordable bottle of hydrogen peroxide from the drugstore.