Professional teeth-whitening by dentists

We found the best review of professional teeth whitening at The Wall Street Journal, where several whitening treatments are tried and compared. Other reviews, including Alternative Medicine magazine and U.S. News & World Report, do not test treatments but do explain the differences, and with the help of trained specialists, point out which are the best.

Experts say that professional teeth whitening is the most effective teeth whitening procedure available. Whether performed at a dentist-supervised center, such as BriteSmile, or by your own dentist, reviewers claim that professional light-activated treatments speed up the bleaching process and that they can lighten teeth up to 10 shades in a single one-hour treatment. Results last a long time (up to two years), but the procedure is expensive and you may need multiple treatments. Dentist-prescribed bleaching kits are another option; these use custom-fitted mouth trays and offer a higher concentration of hydrogen peroxide than over-the-counter treatments, which experts say yields better, longer-lasting results. Reviewers say that less expensive over-the-counter treatments such as Crest Whitestrips Premium (*est. $35) just don't work nearly as well.