Whitening Toothbrush Maker Responds to Criticism

J&J to Modify Some Toothbrush Whitening Claims

September 9, 2011 -- The National Advertising Division (NAD) of the Council of Better Business Bureaus has recommended that Johnson & Johnson Healthcare Products modify certain claims for its Reach Total Care + Whitening toothbrush to clarify that the brush whitens teeth through the abrasive action rather than through bleaching.

As part of its routine monitoring program, NAD -- the advertising industry's self-regulatory forum -- requested substantiation for express claims that included the following:

• "Ordinary toothbrushes clean teeth. Reach whitens them."
• "At the core of this revolutionary toothbrush Reach has engineered a unique row of bristles infused with calcium carbonate microwhitening technology. That means each time you brush, you're whitening teeth and removing stains.*" (*in lab tests)

NAD also examined the implied claim that the Reach Total Care + Whitening toothbrush has been proven to actually whiten teeth when used in the same manner as an ordinary toothbrush.

According to Johnson & Johnson, the toothbrush, launched in 2010, was designed with bristles embedded with calcium carbonate, recognized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as an abrasive used in fluoride toothpastes.

In support of its claims, Johnson & Johnson provided NAD with evidence that demonstrated that bristles infused with calcium carbonate do, in fact, provide statistically significantly better stain removal than brushes with ordinary bristles. The company also provided testing to demonstrate that its advertised toothbrush provided significantly better plaque removal than the other two ordinary toothbrushes tested. In addition, Johnson & Johnson's evidence demonstrated that the difference in whitening and stain removal was meaningful to consumers, according to NAD.

Following its review of evidence, NAD determined that Johnson & Johnson could support the claim that "[o]rdinary toothbrushes clean teeth. Reach whitens them."

However, NAD recommended that the company modify the claims "whitens and removes stains" and "each time you brush you're whitening and removing stains" to ensure that consumers are aware that stain removal is accomplished extrinsically, through the stain-removing abrasive action of the bristles, not intrinsically through bleaching.

According to NAD, Johnson & Johnson said it is disappointed with the NAD recommendation, "given the industry practice of making unqualified whitening claims based on data showing extrinsic whitening only. Nevertheless, we understand NAD's recommendations and will take them into consideration in future advertising."

      - Dr. Green's sidenote


Patients often ask me for product recommendations (the best toothpaste, toothbrush, etc.) that they can use at home.   We evaluate 100s of products every year to make these recommendations.  Johnson & Johnson is one of the leading manufacturers of these at-home products and to be fair, I will say that the vast majority of their products are excellent and safe.  By posting this article I am in no way suggesting to my readers that they should ban J&J products from their household.  The objective of this post is to educate my readers on the potential dangers of store-bought whitening products.
When I recommend any product to my patients, I always consider it's method of action (how it does what the manufacturer claims it does).  With whitening toothpaste or toothbrushes the method of action usually involves the removal of surface staining rather than through the whitening of the tooth enamel (which is how whitening solutions and gels work).  This is accomplished through the use of coarse abrasives, not whitening solutions.

The best analogy I can use would be to compare toothbrushing to sanding a piece of wood.  In order to take raw wood from being splintery and rough to a smooth surface that's ready to stain, a carpenter will start with a fairly coarse grit of sandpaper and use progressively finer grits until the board is smooth.  When you brush your teeth you are basically doing the same thing-you use a toothbrush and toothpaste containing a minty abrasive to remove the plaque and food debris from your teeth.  I always recommend the use of a soft or ultra-soft bristled toothbrush and a traditional toothpaste (non-whitening and non-tartar control) for my patients.  This will do more than enough to clean your teeth on a daily basis - without damaging or removing the protective enamel.  If you have issues with stain accumulation related to heavy coffee consumption, smoking or drinking colas or red wines, that's where we come in.

Regular visits to a dental hygienist are always essential to maintaining optimum dental health, especially if you accumulate stain easily!