Closing an Unattractive Gap between Your Two Front Teeth

Research indicates that single daters consider a bright white smile to be an important characteristic in potential mates. After all, a person's teeth says a lot about them – teeth that are well taken care of tend to indicate confidence, health consciousness, and a strong sense of self responsibility.

Heading to your dentist for regular checkups, cleanings, and professional whitening sessions are some effective ways to maintain a healthy and white smile that you can be proud of when heading on a date with someone new. But your efforts shouldn't stop there. To ensure a gleaming smile between dental visits, consider making use of these natural teeth whitening recipes:

Berry Bright Toothpaste

Strawberries happen to contain an astringent and pack a big punch of vitamin C, both of which help to whiten teeth by effectively removing stains and scrubbing plaque away. You can eat them fresh from their container, but making homemade toothpaste is a more thorough way to enjoy their whitening benefits.

This is because you can use a toothbrush to massage the berries into the surfaces of your teeth to ensure that visible stains vanish.  Here's what you need to make a batch of berry bright toothpaste that will give you a gleaming smile for date night:

• 3 strawberries (if frozen, allow them to thaw before use)
• 1 tbsp baking soda
• 1 tbsp hydrogen peroxide
• 1 tsp water

Start by putting the strawberries in a small bowl and mash them with a fork until they break down into a watery paste with very little lumps left. You may have to add the water to the berries in order to achieve this consistency. Once the strawberries are mashed and pasty, add the baking soda and hydrogen peroxide and then slowly mix the ingredients until well combined into a thick paste.

Dip your toothbrush into the paste or use a spoon to spread a thin layer on your bristles and then brush as you normally would when using commercial toothpaste. You can keep the leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for about a week before a new batch needs to be made.

Tropical Date-Day Smoothie

Having a smoothie a couple of hours before a dinner date will give you enough fuel to ensure that you don't overeat during your meal, and won't make you feel bloated or drag your energy levels down when you're trying to remain upbeat throughout the evening. What's more, adding the right ingredients to your smoothie will brighten up your teeth just in time for date night too. In addition to the whitening power of sweet and juicy strawberries, the celery in this smoothie provides plenty of crunchy scrubbing power that strips stains away from teeth once surface contact is made. To make a tropical pre-date whitening smoothie you'll need:

• 1 banana
• ½ cup frozen strawberries
• ½ cup orange juice
• ½ cup coconut water
• About 8 ice cubes

Place the banana, strawberries, orange juice, and coconut water into your blender and pulse the ingredients until the fruit breaks up into small chunks. Then add the ice cubes and blend the mixture on high until well combined and smooth. Drink as is, pour over a glass of ice, or add it to a bowl with chunks of frozen cherries or blueberries for a hardier snack. Consider pouring your leftovers into a freezer-safe bowl to freeze the concoction for a few hours. You'll find some creamy sorbet waiting when you return home from your big date.

These recipes are fun to make, convenient to store for later enjoyment, and easy on the budget which ensures that you never have to be left unprepared before a big date with someone you are hoping to impress. 

To gain more information on professional ways to whiten your teeth, contact a practice that specializes in cosmetic dentistry.