Lifestyle will play a major part in how dark our teeth have become and this is due to things we eat and drink. Tea, coffee, red wine, curries, gravy, blackcurrant juice are just a few of the things but there are many and this list is not exhaustive. Good dental hygiene will also help to maintain whiter teeth but over a few years the colour will slip and this is where teeth whitening can be useful to restore the colour. If the teeth have darkened very slowly and your genetic colour was very white then the likelihood is the teeth will whiten and you will see a nice smile and you will pleased with how the teeth look. For other people who have always had creamy coloured teeth as a child then whitening will remove staining to reveal the genetic creamy colouration of the teeth. Sometimes if the teeth have darkened very quickly there can be something else that is creating this darkening of the teeth and this might include medications or even the tooth suffering from a trauma or a knock can change the colour but more often than not it is aging and lifestyle that gives us a yellowing glow to the teeth. Some people will only even get a brightening after they have had teeth whitening because of the thing listed above and others will get a shade closer to a whiter or milky colour but they both might have had the same treatment. Also we need to be patient in the time it takes to re-whiten our teeth as the change has developed over many years and having just one treatment is not likely to turn back this amount of time so you need to invest in a program that is ongoing to not only maintain the best results but also to keep getting the teeth whiter and whiter. Some treatments will work better for some types of teeth than others. For example naturally deeper coloured teeth might be suited to an ongoing program with the whitening trays from the dentist which will deep bleach the teeth over a period of time making them whiter very gradually. For lighter and more external type staining then a power whitening treatment may be a good idea as this will brighten the teeth with immediate results and because the gel does not go so deep in to the teeth reduces the chance of getting sensitivity which can be a bit painful. For best advice speak to the dentist and ensure you maintain regular visits to keep a good healthy smile as well as a whiter brighter one!