What is it? According to their website, Aquafresh White Trays are "designed by cosmetics dentists to deliver an easy-to-use whitening experience if you are looking to get a brighter, whiter smile. The disposable trays are pre-filled with the same Enamel-safe ingredient dentists use. The flexible tray is easy to apply. It molds securely around your teeth allowing the Fresh-Tasting gel to whiten even between teeth. Use once a day for visibly whiter teeth in just 3 days." Available at drugstores and big box stores like Target for about $36.00 (though they are often on sale and there are coupons available at www.aquafresh.com if you can get the site to cooperate!).What did you think? I have used Crest Whitestrips in the past, and found them to do a very good job of whitening my teeth. The downside of the Crest strips was that you had to use them twice a day, the strips would often fall off, and my teeth became overly sensitive during the whitening process. When Aquafresh brought their new whitening product to the market on the promise that their trays would fit easier than the strips, I couldn't wait to try them. I was at Target and noticed them on sale, so I thought I'd give them a try.
The White Trays only need to be worn once a day, for about 30 to 45 minutes total. The trays are easy to get into place initially, but after a few minutes, they seem to slip and not fit as well as they should. Then there's the problem of the actual whitening gel...after a few minutes of wearing the trays, the gel seemed to ooze up to my gum lines. It felt disgusting. Just imaging sitting with your mouth slightly open, plastic trays just barely hanging on to your teeth, your mouth filling up with saliva, and then gobs of whitening goo falling off your gums, sliding to the back of your throat. Not attractive.
After wearing the trays and suffering with gobs of "fresh-tasting whitening gel" filling up my throat, I couldn't wait to tear off the trays and rinse the gooey chunks out of my mouth. It induced a full body shudder. Blah.
My teeth did get a little whiter. I couldn't stomach the thought of finishing my seven day whitening experience and stopped after day three. My husband tried the trays for a few days and said he didn't have the same issues I did...maybe I'm just special.
The final verdict? I hate, hate, hate the pre-filled gel strip inside the tray. It's beyond nasty, and Aquafresh White Trays just made me want to go back to Crest's strips. There really has to be a better way of at-home whitening. I haven't used Go Smile--the price scares me--but I feel like Goldilocks trying to find a product that's "just right." So far, I have yet to find the ideal whitener for me. *Sigh.* Given the choice of Aquafresh or Crest, I'd have to pick Crest. Oh well.
