Which stains your teeth more: Tea or Coffee?

Both tea and coffee are leading culprits (along with red wine) in staining teeth. However, that phrase seems to primarily mean BLACK tea. There is argument over whether green tea (or which types of green tea) cause the same amount of staining, and it really doesn't seem like anyone means herbal teas when they are discussing this.

Thus, I can't offer you a scientifically proven answer. I can tell you they both stain teeth, and point to many websites proving this (I am most entertained by this study of tooth-whitening products, which uses a "staining broth" that consists of, among other things, equal amounts finely ground instant coffee and finely ground instant tea - ada.org/prof/resources/pubs/ppr/archives...). If the inter-webs ever take this question on, it is as a squabbling between those who prefer coffee and those who prefer tea (peertrainer.com/LoungeCommunityThread.as...), or just an expose on the dangers of both to your teeth (for instance, ezinearticles.com/?Tooth-Stains---Top-3-... or dental-picture-show.com/teeth_bleaching/...).

What I CAN offer is a suggestion for a solution that may satisfy you and your mom: Firstly, agree on what kind of coffee and what kind of tea you were thinking of when you made the bet. Secondly, acquire said coffee and said tea, and leave them in two clean and unstained and identical (except for labels, of course) white porcelain cups for a set time -- or, to make it slightly more scientific, 2 or 3 cups of each kind, you could even brew new coffee and new tea each time so you allow for variability.(You can set a camera on them to keep either of you from interfering, if that helps set you at ease for the experiment. ) Thirdly, come back after a specified amount of time, dump out the liquids, and have an uninvolved third party rinse (or wash with soapy water, but not scrub) each of the cups.

Fourthly, see which one stained more and decide the bet's winner.

I went to my dentist for a cleaning and checkup, and the hygentist stated - there is nothing harder for her to get off then tea stains. She said even cigarette smoke stains come off more easily. I used to work as an automotive detailer, and had little trouble removing both coffe stains and smells.My experience in my own home is that black tea dyes fabric and carpet, and is nearly impossible to remove.

Based on this, I have to say that tea is the more powerful penatrating dye, and therefore harder to remove from teeth. Upon inspection of several websites, (the two important ones listed below), one described dying two shirts made of natural materials with Tea. The results were "deep..." to "medium..." shades.

The website that described coffe as a dye only stated that an aged effect could be achieved (neither good for teeth) The pictures of the coffe dye were quite light in comparison to the tea dye.

Straight from a dentist's keyboard: "In my experience, tea stains more than coffee, which stains more than soda and other soft drinks. Red wines have the potential to stain worse than tea, as they are more acid. But most people do not drink red wines as much as tea or coffee.

I hope I helped. Good luck. " --Howard Finnk, D.D.S., en.allexperts.com/q/Dentistry-966/school... Also: "Tea stains your teeth the worst, but other drinks that will stain your teeth include dark cola, coffee, grape juice, cranberry juice and wine." -- ehow.com/how_2155429_avoid-foods-that-di....

How much a drink stains the teeth depends mostly on the color of the drink and the time the teeth are exposed. Coffee usually stains more, because coffee is usually darker than tea. However, a dark tea that is sipped more slowly than coffee will stain more.

Here's some good info on tooth stains: Bubbles May Mean Bad Teeth Yellow stains aside, brewed coffee or tea may not be the worst thing you could swish past your pearly whites. Other drinks tested in a recent study produced much more wear and tear on tooth enamel, especially bubbly soft drinks. But here's the surprise: It didn't matter if the sodas were diet or not.

Erosion Explosion When your tooth enamel starts to erode, you've got major problems on your hands. And certain foods like sweets and sodas may hasten this process. All carbonated drinks in a recent study had some impact on tooth enamel (with the one possible exception being root beer -- its impact on tooth enamel was slight).

Citrus-flavored sodas hit teeth hardest, but colas caused problems, too. And it didn't matter if the drinks were diet or full-sugar. It's the Acids Contrary to what you might think, it's not only the sugars in bubbly beverages that erode tooth enamel.It's also the acids.

The total acid content and acid type -- look for names like phosphoric, citric, malic, and tartaric -- in a beverage affect how strong the attack is on your choppers. Rinsing after sipping a soda may hasten the acids out of your mouth. Read up on foods that are good for your teeth, like cheese, nuts, and more.

(They mention that apples, carrots and celery help get rid of stains too. Here's the page: realage.com/ct/tips/3275.

I can't find a good answer for either. However, I know a lot of drinkers of both, and I'd put my money on coffee staining more. It's really dark, dense, and acidic.

Tea is light, not as acidic, and doesn't have very much stuff to stain your teeth in it. If I find good sources, I'll post them here.

Coffee and tea both stain the same, however one must stain at a quicker rate than the other, or they are different colors depending on the color of the liquid. That's my best guess. Also, it depends how much coffee or tea you might drink.

I saw this link drweil.com/drw/u/id/QAA400151 and tea causes stains to teeth.

I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.