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Crest Whitestrips: Terrific Success or Misnomer?



BACKGROUND

This is a picture of Crest's Premium, 7-day, teeth whitening system! My generous sister, Heather, gave this kit to me as a gift 2 Christmases ago.  (I think she's just trying to do her part to married me off.)  I kept the box underneath me sink for a year, waiting for a (female) reason to use it.  Finally, on February 3rd, 2009 (a day of complete unimportance), I decided to bust it out.

REVIEW

The Crest Whitestrips are NOT as user friendly as they claim. They are designed for people with gigantic, horse teeth. Small-mouthed people, beware!  Once I figured out how to remove them from their complicated wrappers, they tasted awful. The instructions ask you to peel off and discard 20% of the strip, which seems like a waste. (But I out-smarted them! I saved those extra bits and carved them up to use once my 7-days are complete.) The gooey bleach always smeared on my fingertips which left temporary, white stain marks. Other than those things, the design is excellent.

In terms of effectiveness, I honestly didn't see much difference during the week-long process. The very first night, I did feel some tooth sensitivity. (I assumed the pain would be comparable to the pain of a cavity; I wouldn't know.) But after that night, I didn't feel anything. My teeth looked and felt shiny immediately after finishing each application, but that is to be expected when a slimy gel gets smeared on them. The shine went away soon afterward. If you would have asked me three days into the process, I would have told you to save yourselves $30 and just stick to brushing and flossing.

"Those kits are kid's stuff." I was told by the Utah College of Dental Hygiene.  "We offer the real deal [teeth bleaching] for about $60 here at the college." When all was said and done, I wasn't sure how I felt about my investment (mostly in the time I sunk into it). Here are some amateur photographic results.  (Apologies for the terrible and inconsistent lighting.)  Decide for yourselves:

Less-than-scientific evidence

Conclusive result are impossible to determine due to my inconsistent and shoddy camera work.  But in my opinion, my teeth did in fact become more brilliant than they were to begin with. After examining the photo journal above, it would be easy to believe the contrary. However, having the benefit of being able to look in the mirror a couple of days later, I do believe my teeth are whiter. Placebo effect? Perhaps.

But it worked for Skwints:




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Comments

  1. NoelleFri Feb 13, 06:53:00 AM MST

    I don't see a difference, it could just be lighting though. The bleaching didn't make a huge difference for me either.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Kelsey PopeSat Feb 14, 11:33:00 PM MST

    IT'S THE TEETH!!!!! We figured it out! ~Apt 216 :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. HeatherSun Feb 15, 02:16:00 PM MST

    yeah, can NOT tell by the picture. When I am done having babies, I am getting my teeth professionally whitened. I am sick and tired of yellowed teeth. Sorry the Crest didn't really work out all that great. Slimy, yet satisfying? Well, slimy at least.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Julie TTue Feb 17, 09:40:00 PM MST

    I'll bet your smile IS more dazzling after Cresting...but as Stefanie will tell you, the dentists product you stick in one of those nightguard things is like 10x stronger. I think you and Heather should buy one (a mouthpiece) and just keep refilling it for a week or two of every year!

    ReplyDelete

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