Keri's Wellness Wednesday: banana teeth whitening

It seems that our world revolves around selfies and other portraits, and the last thing you want on your social media accounts.... is a nice big YELLOW toothy grin.


Tooth whitening literally costs thousands of Rands and can make your teeth feel very brittle and sensitive. The following recipe is supposedly the answer to all of our tooth whitening problems.

And the magic ingredient???

Bananas!

Who would have thought?!

Bananas are found in abundance in KZN so this is really a no-brainer... if it does indeed work. I have tried once since I heard about this trick and it felt good...or perhaps it was just in my head, but my teeth definitely felt whiter.

Now let's get whitening
What you will need...
1 x ripe banana
1 x set of teeth :)

1. Make sure the banana you choose is ripe. The riper the banana the higher the potassium level, and it is the potassium in the ripe banana that does all the whitening work.
 
2. Now believe it or not, there is a way to open a banana. And it's opposite what you probably do. Hold the stem in your hand and peel the banana from the bottom end upwards, just like a monkey does. This gives you a lot more control with the peel AND stops those weird banana threadlike strips from appearing.

3. Using scissors, cut a small piece of the inside of the banana peel and, well, start rubbing this along your teeth.

4. Cover as much and as many of your teeth as possible with the peel, for 2 minutes. This gives minerals time to start their whitening magic.

5. Finally, brush your teeth for the final touch. When brushing, hold your toothbrush like a pen to avoid brushing to hard, also, try alternating hands to stimulate your brain. 

(Don't be afraid to try an all natural, fluoride free toothpaste, they work wonderfully and are MUCH better for your teeth and gums.)

Banana peel also contains high amounts of calcium and vitamin D too. These help to strengthen the teeth and help them absorb the minerals better.