HEALTH

Your teeth were their whitest when you were about 6 or 7. Over time, they yellow—especially if there is excess fluoride in drinking water or you consume a lot of colored soda (acids in cola can stain teeth). Have you used a whitening toothpaste? Dentist Kimberly Harms recommends looking for brands with the American Dental Association’s stamp of approval. If you still want to go for the bleaching process, have your teeth evaluated first by a dentist. “The pulp on the tooth’s nerve is sensitive in young people,” says Dr. Harms. If your teeth are OK and you opt for professional bleaching, plan on shelling out some big bucks. Or you could try an over-the-counter system like the inexpensive Rembrandt Plus Superior Bleaching System or Crest Whitestrips at drugstores.

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