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They’re called pearly whites for a reason.

Your teeth are worth more than a twice-daily scrub. With the new CO. by Colgate’s Supernova Rechargeable At-Home Teeth Whitening Kit, it’s never been easier to enhance your enamel from off-white to smiling bright.

“The big difference between in-office and take-home bleaching is how strong the peroxide is,” said Lior Tamir, DDS, a cosmetic and reconstructive dentist with 12 years of experience. “Typically, when you’re at home, you may use a 10-or 12% peroxide and it’s relatively safe, unless you’re drinking the gel. We use a 40% bleach solution in the office, and you have to be careful with that because you can get chemical burns.” 

Tamir answers everything you need to know about teeth whitening in our FAQ below, along with NYC-based dentist Marc Lowenberg, DDS.

The SuperNova Rechargeable LED system paired with the Oh So Dazzling Enzyme-Powered Teeth Whitening Toothpaste is just what teeth need for an “intense glow-up,” Colgate told the Post.

And my ivories are beaming. With CO. by Colgate, I noticed a difference after the first day after only 10 minutes. Yeah, it’s that instant.

Plus, get 30% off CO. sitewide until Saturday, July 31 with our exclusive code, POST30.

Even with my teeth sensitivity, CO. by Colgate worked

Personally, I’ve never been a fan of teeth whitening. Even though I’m an almost-daily coffee drinker — nobody can come between me and my iced latte — and teeth whitening kits were one of the most-shopped Amazon items on Prime Day, my teeth sensitivity spurred up some hesitation. I chipped my front tooth when I was four years old (from my prima-ballerina days of spinning on my kitchen’s tile floor) and that front tooth has subtle discoloration from that childhood catastrophe.

That said, I was nervous to take products off the shelves that claimed to render my teeth into paper-white brightness, all because I didn’t think that one tooth would catch up with the rest. And yes, I’ve tried every teeth whitener under the sun: custom molds from my dentist costing upwards of $300, brightening toothpaste, and even TikTok-promoted products everyone just had to steal, to name a few. None worked the way I wanted them to.

I tried CO. by Colgate for a week and each morning I looked into the mirror, I felt more confident, refreshed and, of course, couldn’t stop smiling.

How CO. by Colgate works

Unlike strips, CO. by Colgate comes with an LED teeth whitening device, resembling a mouth guard, and a whitening wand containing a 3% hydrogen peroxide serum, enough for about four whitening cycles of seven consecutive days. Plus, LED charging case and USB cord is super convenient; I connected mine to my laptop’s USB-C hub at my desk.

CO. by Colgate Supernova Rechargeable At-Home Teeth Whitening Kit, $129

Here’s a rundown of how CO. by Colgate works:

  • Charge your SuperNova LED device for at least four hours: The power button will blink green while charging and will remain green once it’s fully charged and ready for use.
  • Brush your teeth before whitening: It’s essential to remove all plaque and prepare your teeth for the whitening serum. Make sure to pat the top row of your teeth dry, too — the drier they are, the better the serum will absorb.
  • Click the It’s Lit! Whitening Wand about twenty times: The first use will take lots of clicking, but it’ll all be worth it. Wait until a drop of serum appears on the brush tip, as per package instructions, and then brush a layer of whitening serum onto every tooth. Wait for 10 to 15 seconds for a clear coating to form.
  • Turn on the device to activate the serum: It’ll beep after five minutes when the process is halfway done, then again with the light off after 10 minutes.
  • Clean whitening device with water and wand with dry tissue: Be sure to prepare for the next day’s whitening.

Also, it’s good to note that one to two clicks of the serum is enough for up to four teeth. Avoid contact with your gums during application — you shouldn’t experience a tingling feeling.

CO. by Colgate review — my thoughts

This was, by far, the most instantaneous teeth whitening kit I’ve tried. Other whitening serums irritated my gums and were too clumpy for my liking. In other words, I shouldn’t be tasting a mint paste when using the kit.

The device wasn’t annoying to keep in my mouth, either. I set my phone timer for 10 minutes — in addition to the mouthpiece’s automatic beeping — and found myself unmaking my bed for sleep, removing my makeup, and tidying up my space. Yeah, I looked a little funny, but you can’t beat the convenience.

The serum truly absorbs into your teeth. I drank coffee each day of my whitening, and I still saw results. The pen applicator worked super well for me, too. Because of my slight discoloration, I applied a bit more of the serum to that specific tooth.

The bottom line

The price may be a bit steep, but CO. by Colgate is worth the buy. It’s likely $200 less than professional whitening — which didn’t last all too long for me — and is steps above its competitors I’ve previously tested. Not to mention, it’s a thousand times cheaper than professional bonding.

A teeth whitening FAQ, with dentist-backed advice

Read our comprehensive teeth whitening FAQ below. But first, meet our experts:

  • Lior Tamir, DDS: A cosmetic and reconstructive dentist based in San Mateo, CA. With 12 years of experience, Tamir specializes in full-mouth rehabilitation, veneers and implants.
  • Marc Lowenberg, DDS: A cosmetic dentist at Lowenberg, Lituchy & Kantor in NYC with decades in the field.

Are teeth whiteners safe?

CO. by Colgate’s hydrogen peroxide count is “very low,” according to Dr. Tamir, but it’s more on the safer end. “Most bleach is all the same,” he adds. “The big difference is some systems have LED lights that activate the bleach and reduce sensitivity.” So, CO. by Colgate is great if you have more sensitive teeth and gums, in my experience.

“Make sure the product is FDA approved because that is an indication that the ingredients within the product are safe,” Dr. Lowenberg said. “You should avoid products with Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) — the harshness of this chemical has been proven to create microscopic damage to the oral tissue that lines the inside of your mouth, causing Canker Sores.”

According to Dr. Lowenberg, people with sensitive teeth and receding gums should only use whiteners with a low percentage of hydrogen peroxide.  

Can I whiten my teeth if I smoke?

“I don’t recommend it,” Dr. Tamir said. “It’s unsafe to bleach your teeth and then smoke because that will create oxygen radicals and that can cause cancer.”

How long will I see results from teeth whitening?

“How long the results last is a factor of your lifestyle, depending on how much coffee and red wine you drink,” Dr. Tamir said. “If you do professional bleaching, you’ll have really good results for several months. But, if you’re drinking coffee all day long, then the results are going to revert back much faster. The advice I give patients is, instead of sipping on your coffee for four hours at a time, I would minimize it to the first half-hour and then brush your teeth immediately to break up the stains before they become permanent.”

Also, he notes that some people have more texture in their enamel which tends to attract more staining.

How often should I use a teeth whitener?

“When my patients come in and want whiter teeth, I’ll recommend an in-office bleaching to take things off and then we’ll make them trays that they can bleach their teeth every two to three weeks to maintain how white the teeth are,” Dr. Tamir said. He recommends whitening your teeth once a week to get to the shade you want.

“It varies from patient to patient, but generally we recommend in-office bleaching should be no more than once a year,” Dr. Lowenberg adds. “Over-the-counter products can be used more frequently.”

Does teeth whitening make teeth sensitive?

“The stronger the bleach, the more the sensitivity,” Dr. Tamir said. “The bleach essentially has oxygen molecules and when they interact with your teeth, they break away the stains and bleach them — the same way you’d bleach a shirt.”

Does teeth whitening damage enamel?”

“There are all kinds of urban myths about that, but there’s not that much evidence that it alters the physical aspect of the tooth,” Dr. Tamir said. “Other than making the tooth sensitive, it doesn’t do a whole lot of damage.”

Does teeth whitener work on dental veneers, bonding and crowns?

“If you have veneers on your two front teeth and you bleach around them, the veneers will not bleach, but the other teeth will,” Dr. Tamir said. “Bonding is typically part of the tooth — not the whole tooth — unless it’s a bonded, composite veneer. If you decide to whiten, the shade of white won’t be uniform.”

How do I maintain the whiteness of my teeth during and after treatment?

“You have to have a maintenance plan and think about your lifestyle decisions — can you drink coffee with a straw, or can you limit your intake of red wine?” Dr. Tamir explains. “If you don’t want to deal with maintenance, it may be best to look into veneers.”

How does in-store whitening compare to professional whitening?

“Because professional trays are custom and scalloped to the tissue, you’re able to use a stronger bleach at home without injuring your gums,” Dr. Tamir said. “You can end up with chemical burns if the bleach sits on the gums for too long, so by having custom trays, you’ll be able to keep the tissue clean — and that’s really the advantage.”

With Crest Whitestrips, he adds, you’re likely to injure your tissue because the strip isn’t custom for your teeth. “Chemical burns are unpleasant, even though they heal with time,” he said.

Luckily, with CO. by Colgate, the included whitening pen allows you to paint your teeth and prevent spillover onto your gums.

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