Opalescence35% Gel Syringes Teeth Whitening - Refill Kit (6 Pack / 12 Syringes), Made by Ultradent, Carbamide Peroxide in Mint Flavor. Tooth Whitening 5197-12

Recently I decided to take care of my oral and dental hygiene. After visiting the dentist and having some fillings carried out I asked him whether my teeth could be whitened and how much the cost was. He replied yes and the bill was around £300! Not exactly small potatoes.Whilst I had no inclination whether the price was reasonable at the time I decided to do some research and try out certain products.I have tried the Crest strips a year or so ago and unfortunately they did very little after buying 2 weeks worth supplies and whitening every day.Upon further research it was mentioned that the active agent would be neutralized with saliva so the whitening effect wouldn't be as effective as a professional job. All it would do is froth up in your mouth and not produce noticeable results.This led me to having custom dental trays made from Ebay where they send you some putty for you to make a mould of your teeth and you send it back for them to make custom dental trays.I then ordered some Opalescence 35% from Amazon USA. EU laws unfortunately require anything over 0.1% Hydrogen Peroxide can only be carried out by dentists so I was forced to take that route.Not knowing how much I would need I just bought a 3 pack. Each pack contains 4 syringes. Also since I was going to get stung by customs which I paid for in advance during checkout I took the gamble and bought extra just in case they gave good results.In order to quantify any difference I bought a basic tooth shade guide of Ebay.I started of at a shade 9-10 (My teeth still had intrinsic tar stains from my smoking days and heavy tea stains. We Brits love tea)I finished at a shade of 2 (I only used 5 syringes to get this result. Amazing! Dazzling! Very Joey Essex lol). I decided that this was bright/white enough. Anymore then I would look like Ross from Friends.Please bear in mind monitors and taking camera pictures may distort the colours. I did not add any extra artificial effects, ISO were the same, no exposure was added but due to the difference in lighting the F stops may have been different. Pictures were taken 5 days after whitening treatment so there is no dehydration on the teeth which produce fake whiter results.I was able to use one syringe to do two treatments which I did every second day if my gums needed time to heal or my teeth were too sensitive.Prior to receiving the Opalescence I rubbed vitamin E oil onto my gums, twice a day.As long as you don't overfill the dental trays there should be minimal "spillage" onto the gums that cause chemical burn.I did find that my gums went white when spillage happened and it did cause chemical burn but it healed after a day. My pain threshold is quite high so I was able to bear it but I did give time to heal until I started treatment again.The whitening agent I could hear gently fizzing away slightly during treatment so I knew that it was doing it's magic.Common sense is just involved, if gums hurt then give it time to heal and using vitamin E which is an anti inflammatory does wonders.My whitening treatment contained 35% carbamide peroxide which is around 14% hydrogen peroxide so if it causes excessive pain then reduce the treatment time. I could only bear 30 mins at the beginning but after the second syringe I was able to withstand an hour session. The longer the whitening agent stays on your teeth the more it will be able to break down the bonds of molecules that cause stain.To combat the inevitable tooth sensitivity I used GC tooth moose which also remineralizes teeth and brushed my teeth with Biorepair plus toothpaste. Sensodyne Pronamel works equally well in repairing enamel.Things like Blue plasma lights are a placebo. They do nothing and research has proved it. You can buy a cheap one from Ebay for £3 for psychological assurance but trust me not worth wasting money on (I bought one and it did nothing).I have 6 syringes left and plenty to retouch my teeth over the year or longer to maintain brightness/whiteness.Overall I am very pleased with the outcome but would advise that anyone who wants to go down the DIY route sees a Dental professional first during their checkup and ask whether their teeth is in good condition for whitening treatment.Edit on Novermber 12th 2016.This product has a shelf life of 2 years if refrigerated. I came back to re-do my whitening after 11 months and the potency of the product has reduced greatly from when I first bought it. They were kept refrigerated as specified but don't seem to work as well as when I first received them. So buyer beware if you intend to buy in bulk and store them.

Great product, great value, as described and very quick delivery…no concerns at all.

35% bleach is very high but doesn't burn. Trays somewhat hard to fit but hold the bleach well. Due to the high dose it is left in for1 hour but whitens well, without leaving in over night. Highly recommend for home bleaching.

Works really well. Saw visible results in a week.

I have used countless whitening products from Amazon but first time with these. I applied the 35% at one syringe for top and one bottom. Man have I never felt this amount of gum pain from whitening products. I kept it going for probably 30mins with a mantra of "OK so it seems pretty legit just trust its working". My gums around my teeth per practically white themselves!This might be a superior product but be careful how you apply it. I think next time Ill use less and apply straight to teeth and not as much into the mold.

UPDATE July 2015I have now used this product for about 8 years exclusively. Throughout that time I never returned to the dramatically yellow teeth I had. Last year I replaced the top 2 front teeth that were veneers with new crowns that used new technology. I decided to get the crowns even whiter, down to a BL4. So that is whiter than natural teeth, but not by much. So the challenge was to bleach for about 3-4 weeks to get the teeth next to them down to a BL4 from about a B2.I still use the custom trays the dentist did 8 years ago, but at this point I NEVER burn my gums. After practice, you will never burn your gums either. The trick is good custom trays combined with experience. You still have to deal with a little sensitivity, but it is well worth it, and is temporary for me.I successfully whitened most of the teeth between a BL4 and a B1. With the new crowns in, the teeth look great for someone in their 50's. The teeth look totally natural, too.Last week I did 4 days of touch up and they look even whiter in a short period.Good luck!--- Original 2007 ReviewWith products as this, it is best to precursor the review with some instruction and expectation setting:Instructions:--This product is meant to be used as a refill to custom trays fitted by your dentist. Otherwise, you will have issues with uneven application and gum burning.--Application must follow instructions that are provided. Do not over apply or the gel will burn your gums and turn them white for a little while.Expectations:--At the end of the day, research suggests that the 35% whitens as much as the 15%. The difference is twofold: The 35% needs to onlt stay on for 30 minutes, but the 15% needs to stay on an hour. Second, the 35% will get your teeth whiter faster. E.g., if it takes 12 weeks for the 15% to get to the desired whitening, it may take 8 weeks for the 35%.--The 35% will make your teeth more sensitive than 15%. For me, it was worth the extra sensitivity to get faster results.--It takes time! Results do not occur overnight for most people. Expect 12-16 weeks, applying once a day at night for 30 minutes. If it occurs faster, use the remaining gel to periodically keep them white.--The gum line part of the tooth may still be yellowish. My guess is it is hard to get right to the gum line without burning. So the application will still be a little uneven.My review:I had noticeable results after 4 weeks, from 2-4 shades. One tooth was 4 shades, most were 3, and the rest were 1 to 2. I am under Dentist care for the entire process.For the 4 week period, the Dentist was highly pleased with the progress. I was pleased as well. After 6 weeks, though, the progress seemed slower, and the lower teeth are still too yellow.As well, one issue remains: one upper front tooth would not whiten well. It had undergone trauma when I was young. So, the 2 upper front teeth will need veneers. Right now it is a race to whiten as much as possible to get the whitest shade of veneers possible.My method:-- I used 12) 15% gel for 6 weeks that the dentist provided-- I used (8)35% gel for 4 weeks that I bought from Amazon-- I applied twice a day for at least half the time-- I used between 1/3 to 1/2 of the syringe per applicationIn all, you have to be patient and not expect quick results. Some teeth will whiten faster and others may not whiten much at all. From what I researched and the Dentist's input, results widely vary. However, you should certainly see viable results and the effort is not hard. 30 minutes after bushing and flossing is pretty easy.I disagree with the low ratings for this product. Just because someone does not use the product properly, does not reflect on the product quality. Results based on non-custom trays are invalid in my opinion and should not reflect on the rating.

Works just as well as the the one I was getting at the dentist’s office.