In vitro comparison of natural tooth-whitening remedies and professional tooth-whitening systems.

Background: An increasing number of patients are using natural homemade remedies such as strawberries, banana peels, coconut oil rinse, basil, lemon, activated charcoal, apple cider vinegar, baking soda, and turmeric to obtain whiter teeth. However, studies on these natural whitening products are limited.

Aim: To evaluate the effectiveness of different homemade tooth-whitening agents in vitro.

Xylitol content and acid production of chewing gums available in the markets of Saudi Arabia.

Unlabelled: To assess the actual xylitol content in sugar-free chewing gums available in a market of Saudi Arabia and investigate its effect on acid production and pH change .

Materials And Methods: A total of 29 different brands of xylitol-containing sugar-free chewing gums were collected from five major grocery stores in Saudi Arabia. Xylitol was extracted and its concentration was determined using the D-Sorbitol/Xylitol Enzymatic Kit (Megazyme; Bray, Wicklow, Ireland).