Can You Eat After Teeth Whitening Strips?

If you want fast and professional-looking results from at-home teeth whitening products, teeth whitening strips don’t disappoint.

Easy to use and fast-acting, they work immediately to lift surface stains from your tooth enamel. But can you eat after teeth whitening strips?

We’ll explore the issues surrounding eating after teeth whitening in the article below. So before you use your teeth whitening strips, get the facts about how to eat afterward without ruining the results.

What this article covers:

How Teeth Whitening Strips Work
Tips to Remember After Using Whitening Strips
Foods and Drinks to Avoid After Teeth Whitening
Foods You Can Eat After Teeth Whitening

How Teeth Whitening Strips Work

These teeth whitening strips contain a lightening agent that brightens the tooth enamel by removing surface stains. Simply apply them to clean and dry teeth and leave them on for a couple of minutes.

Some strips contain hydrogen peroxide. In our experience, whitening bleaches like these are safe when used in moderation in dentistry-approved products. Always choose professional teeth whitening strips that use safe bleaching agents for your teeth and gums.

Once the strips have lightened your teeth, remove them and throw them in the trash. Don’t forget to brush your teeth before and after strips with an electric teeth whitening toothbrush for optimal results.

So, how long do teeth whitening strips last? Some whitening strips produce results that last several months. But this is dependent on your dental care and eating habits. We are what we eat and drink, and sometimes that causes tooth stains.

Be sure to also invest in other effective whitening products like a whitening kit, teeth whitening foam, and whitening powder to make your whitening results last longer.

There’s a lot of misinformation out there on how teeth whitening works, like the myth that whitening strips cause white spots on teeth. Hypocalcification, or tooth enamel calcium loss, causes white spots on teeth, not whitening strips.

Tips to Remember After Using Whitening Strips

For the best results from teeth whitening strips, always remember these tips:

Apply Whitening Strips Correctly

Many users are unsure about whether to brush their teeth before or after whitening strips. There’s no hard-and-fast rule about this. But we recommend brushing your teeth before using whitening strips to remove microscopic food particles.

Wait about 30 minutes before using the strips. Follow the instructions on the pack and apply the strips to clean and dry teeth. Why dry teeth? So glad you asked. It’s much harder to get the dental strip placement right when it's slipping and sliding around wet teeth.

It’s best not to brush sensitive teeth after whitening strips. If you have particularly sensitive teeth and gums, then these whitening strips for sensitive teeth might help.

Watch What You Eat

You won’t undo all the brightening magic with one snack, but avoiding certain foods will make the whitening results last longer.

That’s why the best time of day to use teeth whitening strips is at bedtime, when you’re done eating for the day. Unless you develop a midnight snack craving!

Potential Effects of Eating Immediately After Using Whitening Strips

Many everyday foods and drinks stain teeth, like coffee, tea, red wine, and spicy dishes. But teeth whitening can leave the teeth more porous than usual, making them more prone to staining.

Rinsing your mouth after eating with a teeth-whitening mouthwash can help. Preferably, wait two hours before eating or drinking anything on the list below.

how long after using teeth whitening strips can i eat

Foods and Drinks to Avoid After Teeth Whitening

Remember how teeth-whitening strips work? They lighten the tooth enamel's surface, which becomes discolored as a result of what you eat and drink. These are some of the worst offenders below.

Tea And Coffee

Most of us drink tea or coffee daily and don’t want to give them up. For all you Java lovers out there, there’s a solution: sip your favorite coffee drink through a straw!

Staining Fruits

Berries, in particular, can stain the teeth. Rather, toss them in a blender and make a smoothie. But use a straw to keep the berry juice away from your newly whitened teeth.

Wine

Is a glass of red wine a common sight on your dinner table? You’ll have to avoid it for a while unless you enjoy the sight of red wine stains on your teeth.

Colorful Spices

Spicy food is delicious, and we know you’ll find it hard to resist that bowl of curry. Think about how turmeric, the main spice in most curries, will leave yellow stains on your white teeth. That should give you the willpower to resist a little while longer.

Sugary Foods

Sugary foods are just a no-no, anyway. They can contribute to hypocalcification, enamel erosion, and cavities. Many candies are high in sugar and bright dyes. Try to cut these sugary foods out of your diet, and your teeth will stay whiter for longer.

Citrus And Acidic Foods

Citrus or acidic foods like oranges, lemons, grapefruit, and pineapples can do some serious damage to your teeth. Avoid them after teeth whitening and limit consumption in the long run too. It’ll keep your tooth enamel in better shape.

can you eat with teeth whitening strips

Foods You Can Eat After Teeth Whitening

So, what can you safely eat or drink after teeth whitening? You can safely drink water and eat the following foods:

Chicken

Chicken is safe to eat after teeth whitening. The problem with chicken is that most people add sauce or spices to it to liven it up, which can stain your teeth.

We’re not suggesting you stick to bland, boiled chicken for the rest of your days. But it may be a good idea temporarily to maintain your white smile by using the bare minimum of seasoning.

Bread

Like chicken, breads aren’t going to stain your teeth on their own. But the spread you layer on that slice may be a bad idea. Stick to butter or cream cheese, which won’t stain your teeth.

Rice

Rice is another neutral food that’s safe to consume after using teeth whitening strips. Does plain rice not spark joy in your heart? Add a bit of seasoning, but steer clear of the bright spices.

Yogurt

Like most other dairy products, yogurt is safe to consume after whitening your teeth. Plain Greek yogurt is the teeth whitener’s friend, so treat yoself!

can u eat after teeth whitening strips

Conclusion

Based on our first-hand experience, you can eat after using our innovative teeth whitening strips. They’re user-friendly and deliver impressive results in next to no time.

But to maintain these results, you have to watch what you eat. It could mean the difference between a dazzling white smile and stained or dull teeth.

With game-changing teeth whitening products by SNOW, we can help you make dull teeth a thing of the past once and for all.

Did you find the blog beneficial? If so, consider exploring our other guides.