Professional teeth whitening systems: Which is the best one? Which one does your dentist use?

[If you want to skip past this rant and instead just see the info, use this link to jump ahead to the list of professional whitening systems we cover.]

Teeth whitening products, too much hype and not enough science.

With all of the hype and advertising that's associated with professional teeth whitening systems, you might actually think that it matters which product your dentist uses.

Well it might, to some minor degree. But due to the generally low quality of research and case reports generated by the companies that make in-office whitening products, you'd have a hard time making a scientific case for it.

Isn't this the obvious way to compare whitening products?

As an idea (assume we're just kidding with this), why not whiten the left-side teeth of a group of subjects with one product and the ones on the right side with another? Then, afterward, take a look and see if there really is a noticeable difference between the two.

Wouldn't this be a true head-to-head comparison of tooth whiteners? Sure, it seems a harsh way to treat study subjects (assuming a sifgnificant whitening difference was found). But couldn't the darker teeth just be retreated? And besides, college kids love being test subjects and making money doing goofy stuff like this.

The split-arch test.

Well, actually, this exact type of testing is done, although infrequently. It's called the "split-arch" test. (This is the type of testing that has been used to support the stance that a bleaching light isn't really necessary for whitening treatments).

In the case of comparing tooth whiteners, we anticipate that split-arch tests aren't routinely performed because the companies that make these products know that no drastic difference will be found. And, after all, why spend money just proving that your competitor's whitener is good too?

Don't shop for a whitening system, shop for a whitening dentist.

Here's how you pick the best whitener. Don't place your faith in a particular product, brand name, or how flashy a company's advertising is. Pick the best whitener, by picking the best dentist.

Look for the dentist who loves to whiten teeth.

Dentists, just like people in all types of jobs, have varying interests. And those dentists who are genuinely interested in the whitening-cosmetic aspect of dentistry will be the same ones who will:

1) Pay attention to detail when performing bleaching treatments. 2) Have a great curiosity about why treatments didn't work for someone and learn from it. 3) Have a genuine interest in trying different products and knowing which works best in their hands. 4) Discovering which products give great results but also tend to create the fewest side effects.

If you can find a dentist that has all of these types of issues covered, then you'll have found the best whitener (although we mean "whitener," as in a person who whitens teeth, not a product).

So, how do you find this kind of dentist?

Clearly that is the difficulty. How do you find a real teeth-whitening dentist?