Before buying your next box of teeth-whitening strips, consider these factors.
Fit
You want your strips to fully cover your teeth and not go up over your gums — that can cause gum sensitivity. Additionally, their fit should be snug. While you go about your day, waiting for it to be time to take the strips off, they should not slip and slide around your mouth.
Coverage
While whitening your molars is not necessary (since you hardly see them anyway), your whitening strips should still cover a good percentage of your teeth. After you apply the strip, smile and look in the mirror. Is the strip touching all of the teeth you can see in your normal smile? If not, time to try another brand.
Ease of use
Whitening strips should be simple. Apply the product, wait a specified amount of time and take them off. If the teeth-whitening strips require other steps or seem difficult to use, try another brand.
Sensations
If you have sensitive teeth or gums, look for products that will give you the least amount of sensitivity. Oftentimes, hydrogen peroxide is too strong for sensitive teeth, so try coconut oil, instead. Don’t suffer through a product if it burns your gums or hurts your teeth.
Length of wear
Most strips require at least 30 minutes of wear in order to get the best results. If you have sensitive teeth or not enough time for whitening strips, look for products that don’t require much wear.
