Rembrandt Whitening Kits Superiority Claims Unsubstantiated – NAD

Den-Mat's tooth-bleaching kits carry unsupported superiority claims such as "Only your dentist whitens better," NAD states in its upcoming September/ October Case Reports.

Packaging and print ad claims for Rembrandt Plus Superior Bleaching System and Dazzling White Tooth Bleaching Value Kit "may be interpreted as superiority claims which require data showing [they] whiten teeth better than a significant portion of OTC bleaching products on the market," NAD says.

The National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus found the data provided by Den-Mat "failed to demonstrate that either Dazzling White or Rembrandt Plus outperforms all other bleaching products." As a result, the watchdog group recommends the superiority claims be discontinued.

The challenge, initiated by Crest WhiteStrips marketer Procter & Gamble, also targeted the phrases "Superior Mouthguard Bleaching" and "Superior White Teeth" as superiority claims that "fail to identify the product or products against which the claims are made."

P&G's challenge coincides with the firm's renewed focus on the tooth-whitening segment. The company has pointed to WhiteStrips as a significant factor in its attempt to gain share in the oral care market, and speculated the product could "redefine the landscape for oral care." Five-month retail sales for the product reached $70 mil. (¹ (Also see "P&G Crest WhiteStrips Retail Sales Reach $70 Mil. In First Five Months" - Pink Sheet, 5 Nov, 2001.), p. 13).

To support its contention that Rembrandt's claims are unsubstantiated, P&G submitted to NAD two randomized clinical trials directly comparing Rembrandt Plus with Crest WhiteStrips. The firm said the studies "provide direct evidence of the false and misleading nature of Den-Mat's comparative claims."

The first study looked at 60 subjects over a two-week period; the results indicated the WhiteStrips group "experienced superior whitening for all color parameters, including 3.2 times greater reduction in yellowness, 1.9 times greater improvement in lightness and two times greater overall color change," the Case Report says.

The second study involved 20 subjects and found WhiteStrips provided more than two times greater reduction in yellowness compared with Rembrandt Plus after two weeks. Both studies used digital image analysis to measure tooth color and whitening benefit.

Although Den-Mat submitted three studies of its own to counter P&G's allegations, Procter & Gamble criticized the studies for not containing a "head-to-head comparison of any Rembrandt product against Crest WhiteStrips or any other currently marketed home bleaching kits," NAD notes.

P&G also maintained Den-Mat's studies were flawed because none of the tests involved currently-marketed products. The trials looked at Rembrandt Lighten Bleaching Gel, which is no longer on the market.

In defense of its research, Den-Mat maintained "as long as the studies were competently and accurately performed, the passage of time does not alter the results." Moreover, the firm noted that Lighten Bleaching Gel contains the same formula as Rembrandt Plus Bleaching Gel.

The company contended P&G's studies "were misleading because they were reported only at an arbitrary two-week point in time." Although directions for Crest WhiteStrips instruct two-week use, "nowhere do the directions for the Rembrandt Plus System limit...the use of [the product] to two weeks," Den-Mat said.

In addition, the firm pointed out that American Dental Association guidelines for home-use tooth-whitening products "require follow-up examinations three months and six months after the initial treatment to determine the safety and efficacy of the products."

However, consumers using Crest WhiteStrips begin to lose their teeth's whiteness after completing the bleaching treatment, whereas the Rembrandt Plus System "is designed to provide long-term whitening," Den-Mat noted.

Whitening achieved and maintained over many months "is clearly more meaningful to consumers than that which occurs on a short-term basis at the end of a typical OTC bleaching regimen," the company added.

Nevertheless, despite Den-Mat's suggestions its products work better than others, the firm maintained its use of the word "superior" in labeling is not meant to compare Rembrandt Plus to other home-use bleaching agents. For this reason, no specific products are referenced, Den-Mat said.

While NAD agreed the "Superior Mouthguard Bleaching" and "Superior White Teeth" claims "may be considered innocuous statements of puffery" on their own, the group determined that, in conjunction with the claim "Only your dentist whitens better," the impression conveyed to consumers is one of comparatively better product performance.

NAD additionally takes issue with several other Rembrandt claims challenged by P&G, including: "Safe, maximum whitening from a name you can trust." The ad watchdog group says the claim "establishes a level of performance that cannot be exceeded by others."

While Den-Mat argued the claim is substantiated because Rembrandt Plus and Dazzling White kits offer greater amounts of peroxide than other tooth-bleaching products, NAD disagreed that peroxide levels necessarily translate into an increased whitening effect.

A number of variables influence the efficacy of tooth bleaching, NAD states, including "the amount of the peroxide that comes in contact with the teeth [and] the manner in which contact is made." In the absence of such data, NAD recommends the claim be discontinued.

Finally, with regard to statements such as "Pain-free bleaching" and "Clinically proven to lighten teeth without harmful abrasion or tooth sensitivity," NAD agrees with P&G that Den-Mat had not provided reliable data to support the claims.

P&G also challenged several statements that Den-Mat has since modified. The claim "from the inventors of whitening" has been changed to "from the pioneers in whitening products."

The claim "Rembrandt is the first bleaching gel approved by the ADA for use by dentists," which P&G asserted would mislead consumers into thinking the entire bleaching system has the ADA seal when only one of the products in the kit has the dental group's seal, also has been altered to specify which product has received ADA approval.

Although Den-Mat said it "respectfully disagrees" with NAD's decision, the firm said it would take the group's recommendations into account when creating future advertising.