With hundreds of different product options available in your neighborhood grocery store, it can be overwhelming to decide on the best toothpaste, floss, or mouthwash. Luckily, we’ve compiled a list of our favorite drugstore dental products to help you make your decision. All of these top-rated products are ADA-approved, affordable, and easy to find at your local drugstore or grocery store.
Best Overall Toothpaste
Colgate Total Whitening Toothpaste
In addition to whitening power, it has antibacterial properties that help defend against gum disease and tooth decay. These effects come from the active ingredient, stannous fluoride, which helps offset the increased sensitivity some people experience when using whitening toothpaste.
Best for Sensitive Teeth
Sensodyne is a popular toothpaste brand specifically designed for people with sensitive teeth. It contains potassium nitrate, which helps to block nerve signals that cause pain or discomfort in response to hot, cold, sweet, or sour foods and drinks. Sensodyne is available in a range of flavors and varieties, including Pronamel, which is designed to strengthen tooth enamel.
Best Whitening Toothpaste
Colgate Optic White Toothpaste
This toothpaste contains gentle abrasives to scrub stains and polish teeth. But it also uses hydrogen peroxide for its natural lightening properties, giving you a one-two punch of whitening techniques. It's the only bleaching toothpaste (not merely stain-removing) that the ADA has granted approval to, and like all ADA-approved pastes, it includes fluoride for cavity prevention. Despite its powerful whitening ability, Optic White is safe for enamel and many people report less sensitivity and irritation than with other whitening toothpaste.
Best Overall Dental Floss
Flexible Micro-Grooves™ run the entire length of the floss, providing multiple cleaning surfaces to easily grab and remove more plaque. The soft, stretchy consistency is easy on gums.
Best Comfort Dental Floss
Oral-B Glide Pro-Health Deep Clean Floss
Oral-B’s Glide is a well-known floss brand for a reason—its extra smooth texture allows it to easily slide between teeth, even if they are very close together. It is effective at plaque removal, gently stimulates gums, and features a light layer of natural wax to help with grip.
Best Overall Mouthwash
TheraBreath Fresh Breath Oral Rinse
TheraBreath Fresh Breath Oral Rinse uses the power of oxygen to target the bad-breath-causing bacteria that live deep under your tongue and at the back of your throat. This refreshing antibacterial cleanser rinse is alcohol-free so it doesn't burn.
Best Whitening Mouthwash
Crest Pro-Health Advanced with Extra Whitening
This product is alcohol-free. It contains fluoride to help fight cavities, and hydrogen peroxide meant for removing surface stains and whitening teeth.
It’s also designed to strengthen tooth enamel and kill the germs responsible for causing bad breath. Users find that it can take several months to see whitening results.
Best for Dry Mouth
It contains a mouth-moisturizing system to help provide soothing, lubricating relief and its gentle, alcohol-free formula refreshes your mouth, while helping to keep it clean.
If you have dry mouth, you should also use a toothpaste with fluoride to prevent cavities, and make sure you wait after brushing to use mouthwash so you don't rinse the fluoride away.
If you have questions about other products, ask your dentist for their recommendations!
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