Squeezing out the truth about toothpaste.

Byline: Mark Baker The Register-Guard

Brace (or should we say, "Braces?') yourself. We're about to go all Andy Rooney on you.

Ever notice how many types of toothpaste there are these days? Whitening, Extra Whitening, Dual Action Whitening and Whitening plus Scope. Whitening Sensations, Whitening with Tartar Control and Tartar Control plus Whitening. There's MultiCare Whitening, Vivid White, Sparkling White Cinnamon Spice, Cinnamon Rush Liquid Gel and our personal favorite - Colgate's Sparkling White Mint Zing!

But try to get a consensus from four out of five dentists when it comes to what toothpaste you should use and you'll get no consensus at all. Just a dose of common sense.

"The whitening toothpastes, in my opinion, are kind of a sham," said Dr. Michael Furgason, a Eugene dentist. "They won't whiten your teeth."

Oh, they might limit coffee, wine and cigarette stains, said Furgason, who chooses good ol' regular Crest toothpaste for himself, labeled "Cavity Protection" in today's array of toothpaste types on your grocer's shelf.

But they won't whiten your teeth in the long run, and might even cause some damage because they contain a harsher abrasive.

Crest is far and away the leader when it comes to developing a paste for perhaps each tooth in your mouth. Crest even makes red (that would be the Cinnamon Rush Liquid Gel) and orange toothpaste nowadays. The latter is the new Whitening Expressions with a "fresh citrus breeze." Warning: You'll get an orange tongue and a nice orange gloss on your teeth using this one.

We found 21 types of Crest toothpaste on the shelf of a Eugene supermarket this week. And that's not including Crest's White Strips, its dental whiteness formula, or Night Effects, its nighttime whitening system.

Colgate came in second with 13 types on the shelf - Total; Total Advanced Fresh; Total plus Whitening; Total Mint Fresh Stripe; the aforementioned Sparkling White Cinnamon Spice, Whitening with Tartar Control, Tartar Control plus Whitening and Sparkling White Mint Zing; Whitening; Herbal White; Cavity Protection; Baking Soda and Peroxide; and the all new! Fresh Confidence.

Names like that last one make dentists, not to mention most folks, laugh.

"I kind of had to chuckle," said Dr. Bob Stephenson when the samples for Crest's new "Rejuvenating Effects" toothpaste arrived at his office.

Does it really rejuvenate you? "I still have my wrinkles," the 44-year-old Eugene dentist said. "I still have my gray hair."

His regular toothpaste? "I use whatever samples I can get ahold of," Stephenson said. Most toothpastes that contain fluoride are pretty much the same, he said. "It's not what you use," he added. "It's how you use it."

Brush thoroughly and properly for at least two minutes, he said. Brush in between your teeth.

And don't forget to floss.

CAPTION(S):

Claims such as "Rejuvenating Effects" are enough to make a dentist laugh.