T is for Teeth Whitening

For my Pinterest project theme for the A to Z Challenge, I have cooked. I have made jewelry. I have cleaned my burners. I have killed insects. Today, I whiten my teeth.

Maybe.

Here's the pin:

Found on livelaughandlovewithlana.blogspot.com

Activated charcoal, which is made from real, honest-to-God charcoal, like the kind you use in a grill, I kid you not, is used to treat poisonings and drug overdoses in hospitals. It can also be used to treat, um, flatulence issues, to lower cholesterol and as a hangover remedy.

And it is said to whiten teeth.

Challenge accepted.

Walmart no longer carries activated charcoal (hmmm, wonder why?), but after a Facebook plea by me, my friend Tracy offered to bring some to me. It comes in capsule form, and the first order of business is to empty the charcoal out of the capsule. The directions did say that the charcoal stains and gets EVERYWHERE (it does) and to take care when using it. Since I was in the upstairs bathroom and really far from the kitchen (and it's been confirmed that I'm lazy), I used a plastic spoon as a receptacle for the charcoal (don't make me explain why I have plastic spoons in my bathroom). 

Ruby was oddly attracted to the charcoal capsules.

I couldn't pull the halves of the capsule apart, so I had to cut it open.
It may have been for the best, since yanking it apart probably would have
sent charcoal powder flying all over the bathroom.

The next step was to dip a wet toothbrush into the charcoal and brush for two minutes. Oh, and to remember that it stains, so be careful.

The rest of the story is best told in pictures:

All done and brushed with the minty freshness of Colgate.

Here is my before and after picture:

I need braces.

Can you tell a difference? Pretty sure it's minimal, if any.

I felt like I needed more evidence than just my experience, so, after bribing him with the promise of baking him a lemon cake (sucker), I convinced my husband to try it:

He has a very small mouth (which he passed to our daughter
and has cost us thousands of dollars in orthodontic treatment).
He is also now complaining that his mouth feels like an
aquarium, but he's exaggerating, because the charcoal was,
believe it or not, tasteless. Dry, but tasteless.

Still not seeing a real difference, although the Pinterest pin SWORE everyone who tried it saw immediate results.

One more guinea pig (whom I bribed with the promise of cooking supper and actually did):

MANY THOUSANDS of dollars to fix those teeth....

Okay, maaaaybe I see a real difference, but I think I'm still going to have to say this one was a Pinterest FAIL (and you can thank me in advance for sparing you any pictures of the inside of the sink, with black spit splattered everywhere).

But don't take MY word for it. PLEASE try this challenge yourself. And post pictures.