text: Whitening toothpastes only work up to a point (usually only remove surface stains, and only partially because they work by abrasion). If you really want to whiten your teeth, get some sort of tooth whitening product, or better yet, go see you dentist.\n\nOne additional note on tooth whitening products. The main active ingredient in them is hydrogen peroxide, the maximum level of which is regulated in the EU. The problem is that in the case of cosmetics products (basically anything you can buy in a regular shop) the maximum level allowed is not enough to actually whiten teeth. So whatever you find on shop shelves either doesn't really work, or if it does, it's not entirely legal. Regulations in the US are different and peroxide levels in products there are much higher.