Yellow Stains on Teeth: What Removes Them and What Does Not

Is it a stain or the colour of your teeth?

A stain is something that has built up on the enamel. The colour of the tooth comes from inside, mostly from the dentine under the enamel. The two can look alike, and many people have both.

Some signs point towards stain:

• the colour is patchy, darker near the gum or between the teeth;
• it built up over months with coffee, tea, red wine or smoking;
• it appeared while you were using a chlorhexidine mouthwash.

Other signs point to colour inside the tooth. The whole tooth may be evenly yellow, a single tooth may have turned grey, or white and brown patches may have been there since childhood. A professional clean helps tell them apart. Colour that remains afterwards is not surface stain, and a dentist can check whether it is the tooth's natural colour, colour inside the tooth or a sign of a problem such as decay.

What removes surface stain

A professional clean

According to the American Dental Association, a wide range of surface stains can be reduced by a professional clean¹ or a whitening toothpaste. A dental hygienist or dentist polishes the stain off and removes hardened deposits that brushing cannot.

How often you need one is individual. Two UK trials followed 1,711 adults without severe gum disease who went to regular check-ups. Over two to three years, a routine scale and polish every six or twelve months made little or no difference to gum inflammation², compared with no scheduled scale and polish. It slightly reduced tartar. Stain was not measured. So if stain builds up quickly for you, the interval is something to agree with your dentist rather than a fixed rule.

A whitening toothpaste

These toothpastes mainly remove stain from the surface. According to the ADA, toothpastes like these will not have a significant impact on colour inside the tooth¹. Choose one with fluoride, and use it as an ordinary toothpaste, not as a scrub.

Stopping what causes it

If a mouthwash is behind the stain, the stain returns until the mouthwash stops. A Cochrane review found that four to six weeks of rinsing with chlorhexidine stained teeth³. Chlorhexidine is meant for short courses. Do not stop a mouthwash your dentist prescribed without asking them.

If colour remains after a clean

Bleaching is the option to discuss with a dentist. In a Cochrane review of home whitening, sensitivity and gum irritation were the most common side effects, usually mild and short-lived⁴. Whitening lightens only natural teeth⁵, so fillings, crowns and veneers keep their colour and may no longer match.

What not to scrub with

• Charcoal powders and charcoal toothpastes. A review found no charcoal study that met its criteria for reliable evidence, and too little data to support the safety or whitening claims⁶. Of the first 50 charcoal toothpastes it found online, a third contained bentonite clay. Gritty products can wear enamel, and thinner enamel lets more yellow show through.
• Lemon, vinegar and other acids. The ADA says the few studies on these home methods raise questions about their effectiveness and safety¹. Acidic drinks such as orange juice are an established cause of enamel erosion⁷.
• Household bleach. Never put household bleach or other cleaning products in your mouth.
• Pharmacy or household hydrogen peroxide. None of the sources we reviewed tested it as a tooth whitener. In the EU, whitening products containing or releasing more than 0.1% and up to 6% hydrogen peroxide may be sold only to dental practitioners⁸. For each course, the first use is by them or under their direct supervision, and the products are not to be used on anyone under 18.

Keeping stains from coming back

• Brush twice a day with fluoride toothpaste, once last thing at night. UK guidance for adults is toothpaste with 1,350 to 1,500 ppm fluoride, and to spit out after brushing rather than rinse⁹.
• Clean between your teeth every day.
• Rinse with water after coffee, tea or red wine.
• Tobacco is one of the main sources of stain. Stopping smoking prevents new tobacco stain; stain already on the teeth may need a professional clean.
• Keep to check-ups and have a clean when stain builds up.

Cleaning also matters after whitening. A study followed 60 people who whitened at home, half of them smokers. The result held at one year when surface stain was removed by a professional clean¹⁰. Measured without cleaning, the teeth had darkened slightly. On one of the three measures the colour drifted back even after cleaning. It was a single study.

When to see a dentist

Book an examination if:

• stain stays after brushing well for a few weeks;
• you notice brown or black spots, or a patch that feels rough or sticky;
• one tooth is getting darker than the others;
• your gums bleed when you brush, or your teeth are sensitive;
• you want to whiten and are not sure whether your teeth and gums are healthy enough.

Emergencies. Increasing pain, facial swelling or a fever: see a dentist without waiting. Swelling that makes it hard to breathe, speak or swallow¹¹, swelling that spreads to your eye or neck, a lot of swelling inside your mouth, or difficulty opening your mouth: go to an emergency department or call 112.

Frequently asked questions