Nice Nashers? - The iWhite Teeth Whitening Kit

Craig of That Dapper Chap tries out the iWhite teeth whitening kit available from Mankind 

We all want that super clean Hollywood smile. I know I do, but I am a bit scared of taking the plunge as I don't want to come out of the Orthodontist looking like a grinning shark.

When Mankind kindly sent me an iWhite teeth whitening kit, I read the instructions, did some Googling and thought "Why not, lets give it a go" If it goes horribly wrong I just gargle Espresso for a couple hours!

THE iWHITE KIT

The box is clean, simple and polite. It tries it's best to look somewhat remotely 'medical' but we all know that it's not. Nothing you can do at home on your own is comparable to the treatment that you will get from a specialist, so please bear that in mind when considering what results you should expect from an over the counter product.

Inside you'll find some neat looking trays that contain rubbery teeth guards filled with the active ingredient that claims to "whiten your teeth up to 8 shades whiter" Now I'm no expert but is a 'shade' a scientific measurement or is it one of those subjective things which is open for debate. Either way I'm up for 8 shades!

The product also claims to 'strengthen' the teeth by delivering "a highly soluble source of calcium" The active ingredient (and again I'm not an expert) seems to be the phthalimido-peroxy-caproic acid which is widely used in teeth whitening. 

I did do a bit of research on it to make sure it wouldn't kill me if I digested it, and I was pleasantly surprised. I'm more likely to die by choking on the mouthguard after laughing at the TV in the 20 minutes it takes to do its thing. I really am one of those people that has to laugh when they know the really mustn't!

As the instructions asked, I brushed my teeth and popped in a set of gel filled guards. So far so good. Don't be tempted to leave them in for more than the suggested time. It is tempting to think that the longer you leave them in, the whiter your teeth will get. I don't know if that's the case because I stuck rigidly to 20 minutes. But I doubt it and it states 20 minutes for a reason. Don't do it. I'm not saying that your head will explode, but these are your teeth, you're whitening them because you want to be proud of them, so don't mess around with chemicals!

I'd heard stories of home whitening kits that they taste horrible and give you a sore throat. I have to say the iWhite kit did neither. My only issue was a buildup of saliva during the 20 minute wait that I didn't want to swallow. When my 20 minutes was up I just spat everything in to the sink and rinsed my mouth as it told me to in the instructions.

THE RESULTS

Day one. No difference. The box says that i'll get "instant results" The result was that my teeth were exactly the same as 20 minutes before.

Day two and again no difference.

Day three and I started to ask myself why I was bothering as again I could see no marked difference.

Day four and I wondered whether things were a little lighter. Maybe there was a slightly new pearlescent sheen to my teeth but I wasn't sure.

The final day and I finished the course because I felt that I should rather than because I was getting amazing great results. I think that maybe my teeth were a little whiter. Not 8 shades (on whatever scale that is?) Nobody exclaimed at how white my teeth were looking or asked if I'd had them whitened. Nobody noticed. Nobody saw a difference. When I asked people if my teeth looked whiter I got looks which clearly told me 'no'.

I think that they may be a shade whiter. Maybe it's that my teeth are already fairly white or maybe it because the product needs work. Either way if I want to whiten my teeth again, I may look at an alternative product first.