The Good: Alcohol Free
The Bad: Utterly ineffective, Tastes bad
The Basics: Crest Whitening Rinse is a mouthwash that does nothing of what it promises, disappointing this consumer!
It might seem like I don't like Crest products by the fact that with only my second review of a Crest product, I am yet again panning and not recommending the product. Before it was the Crest Cool Mint Gel toothpaste (reviewed here!) and now it is Crest Whitening Rinse. This is a triple-action mouthwash with a supposed fresh mint taste that is alcohol free and is just lousy. After a month of use, I've seen and felt no real results. This is a stark contrast to the Listerine Total Care (reviewed here!) I fell in love with on the way back from Las Vegas. So far, though, Crest products have managed to only disappoint me and the Crest Whitening Rinse is a lesser mouthwash and one that is very easy for me to not recommend.
My wife arrived home with the 32 fluid oz. (946 ml) bottle of Crest Whitening Rinse when our Listerine Total Care was almost empty and proudly announced that she had gotten a great deal on it. I was skeptical; usually cheap mouthwash is just that. I was also skeptical of how an alcohol free mouthwash would work. I remember being a young kid, visiting my mother's apartments and her warning me in the strongest possible terms against drinking or even rinsing with her Listerine. But whenever I use Listerine now, I know it is working because of the way it tears through every nerve in my mouth.
The Crest Whitening Rinse offered no such feeling that hinted it might be doing anything effective. The "triple-action" formula claims to whiten teeth, protect against stains, and kill bad breath germs. At best, it did one out of three effectively and that is mostly because after a month of use, I cannot argue against it effectively protecting against stains. Truth be told, I don't engage in any risk behaviors like smoking that might stain teeth, so it is very hard to determine if this product actually protected against stains. I brush my teeth daily, so I've never had teeth get stained from either coffee or tea consumption.
Use of the product is ridiculously easy. Crest Whitening Rinse comes in an opaque white bottle and the liquid inside is translucent. It has a slight blue tinge, but it is essentially clear. The cap is not childproof and one need only twist the cap to get it off. The directions recommend using 1/2 fluid ounce of the product to swish inside one's mouth for a full minute before spitting it out. Thus used, the bottle ought to last for sixty-four uses.
The claim that this kills bad breath germs is a dubious one. I would argue that it, at best, stuns them. After all, I've had some unfortunately bad breath the last few days (I have a pretty nasty headcold which has made my throat a breeding ground for bad breath germs) and I sought relief from it with the Crest Whitening Rinse. I used twice the prescribed amount (I have a big mouth) and dutifully swished it for a full minute each time. The thing is, the sensation of this fluid in the mouth is one of mild tingling. It is not like the flesh-rending feeling that comes from using Listerine for even fifteen seconds.
So, I've had a pretty gross feeling in my mouth and after using this product - which tastes like chalk and mint (in that order) - my mouth tasted chalky. So, I decided to do the only test that mattered. I went and kissed my wife. She frowned - she's very sympathetic when I get ill - and asked, "Ummm . . . did you have some bad milk?" If one's breath smells like bad milk after using a mouthwash it's probably not the most effective product. "Alcohol Free" seems to be a euphemism for "utterly ineffective." After using it three times thus, my partner was still not in a kissing mood and I couldn't blame her; my mouth did not feel more clean and clear after using the Crest Whitening Rinse.
As for the third promise, to whiten teeth, neither my partner nor I was impressed with this mouth wash. In addition to making our tongues feel chalky, the whitening rinse did not perceptibly whiten our teeth. Mywife is a photographer and we took images at the beginning of the month of both our smiles and another one tonight under identical conditions and there was no noticeable difference in the whiteness of our teeth. Our teeth were no more white, nor yellowed, than they were at the beginning of the month. Moreover, there was no difference in sheen either. It's not like this product did anything to improve the look of our teeth.
This is unsurprising to me considering the ingredients are primarily water, glycerin, and hydrogen peroxide. The lack of killing power makes sense, as it is so watered down and the second ingredient is similarly inert.
Crest strikes out again - in my mouth - as it ineffectively fights bad breath with the Whitening Rinse, which also unfortunately does not whiten teeth in any noticeable way after a month. At least it's inexpensive . . . or, perhaps more accurately, cheap.
For other mouth-related products, please be sure to check out my reviews of:
Tootsie Roll lip balm
Oxyfresh Dental Gel
Kiss My Face Triple Action Toothpaste
3/10
For other health and beauty product reviews, please be sure to check out my index page on the subject by clicking here!
© 2011, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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