Lumist<\/a> are the most unique of all the strips we researched. Rather than have just a plastic backing on a sticky peroxide-carrying gel, Lumist makes their backing more formable and stretchy. You can mold these strips around tooth features that the other strips will just bubble and crease on, ironically making Lumist a more three-dimensional solution that Crest’s so-called 3D Whitestrips.<\/p>\nLumist uses 20-percent carbamide peroxide in these strips, which makes them faster-acting than other strips and potentially as quick as a tray and gel solution. The price of the Lumist strips is the weak point, though; at $6 per treatment, they\u2019re almost as expensive as the stronger and more comfortable-to-wear Opalescence – GO trays.<\/p>\n
How we selected products to test<\/h2>\n
Teeth whitening products are, for the most part, re-packaged supplies made for dentists to use in-office or give to patients for home treatment under professional supervision.<\/p>\n
The one whitening product that’s “accepted” for at-home use by the American Dental Association is Crest’s Whitestrips line, which is now in its second generation of products and branded “Crest 3D White.” This was an obvious place to start.<\/p>\n
When we researched the most-purchased products, though, it’s pretty obvious that most people who want white smiles don’t mind buying at-home whitening products that aren’t formally approved.<\/p>\n
Over-the-counter teeth whitening kits use low concentrations of peroxide and are not considered dangerous. The FDA does not regulate teeth whitening kits sold in the U.S. Of course, dentists are quick to point out the uncertainty that comes with this lack of regulation. Dentists have access to stronger whitening products and the training to use them safely.<\/p>\n
Written reviews of whitening kits are typically vague about product recommendations, and we didn’t find any comparative reviews that assess kits against one another.<\/p>\n
We did find lots of conversation about teeth whitening on the web. The conversation is mostly about how well whitening works, how quickly it works, and whether it’s safe to do at home. Subreddits like r\/dentistry frequently discuss the pros and cons of at-home whitening.<\/p>\n
We looked at the top-selling products available at local discount stores and on major online retailers, and after closely scrutinizing 35 different products and whitening systems, we bought 16 different products to test, including five kits, five types of whitening strips, three stand-alone tray kits and three whitening gel products not sold as kits.<\/p>\n
Two of the highest-rated gels we bought, from Philips and Opalescence, are labelled for sale through a dentist but still designed for use at home.<\/p>\n
After looking at the range available and talking to a dentist, we decided to test the most popular 35-percent strength in most kits to see if our tester had any sensitivity or other reactions. We also tried a few slightly stronger or slightly weaker solutions.<\/p>\n
How we tested<\/h2>\n
There’s one major hurdle to testing whitening products: Everyone’s results will be different. No two smiles are alike, and you can’t know if the stains that you have will be as easy to remove as another person’s. We tested with a single subject who has mildly sensitive teeth and no cavities or gum problems.<\/p>\n
That said, there’s a reason all of these products use hydrogen peroxide (and carbamide peroxide, which breaks down to become hydrogen peroxide) as their whitening agent. It’s been proven to work, and it’s predictable. Every whitening system designed for effective at-home use is based on peroxide bleaching.<\/p>\n
We bought 13 different whitening products, and our tester used them over the course of three months, focusing mostly on differentiating ease of use rather than the effect of the active ingredients.<\/p>\n
We tested the activity of the peroxide gels in a coffee-stain test to make sure that these kits aren’t including fake or watered-down supplies, but it’s impossible for us to say anything more conclusive than that about results.<\/p>\n
Instructions<\/h3>\n
<\/p>\n
First, we laid out each kit and compared the instructions given. We found that the guidance from each product was similar, though some kits were definitely more thorough.<\/p>\n
Instructions for shaping the mouthguard were almost always more detailed than instructions for applying the whitening product itself. Instructions for using whitening strips, which we admit are a fairly simple type of product to use, were almost non-existent.<\/p>\n
We were expecting some clarification or guidance related to how long to use each product, but in most cases the recommended treatment times included wide ranges and seemed almost arbitrary. If you leave the bleach on your teeth longer, you’ll get more of an effect, but these suppliers are wary of making promises.<\/p>\n
Standout instructions came with the Sparkling White Smiles – Custom Tray System<\/a>, which is a good thing since a mistake mixing silicone putty and taking an impression could result in a wasted kit. Thankfully, Sparkling White Smiles also offers an extra tray\u2019s worth of impression putty.<\/p>\nEase of molding process<\/h3>\n
Timing is important with two-part silicone putty, since it hardens within a minute of mixing, but the heat-molded trays in the other kits required watching for signs that the walls were beginning to droop and acting immediately. One tray left in for a few seconds too long stuck to itself (like the instructions warned) and required a complete do-over.<\/p>\n
Most kits include spare heat-moldable tray materials, just in case. Instructions for the kits were adequate, with no real stand-out winners. The timing for when to remove the tray from the hot water, when to put it in your mouth, and keeping all the edges from sticking together was surprisingly complex but manageable.<\/p>\n
Fit and comfort<\/h3>\n\n