Today we have another Instagram hyped product! Not long ago I reviewed the Coffee Scrub by Bean Body and now it's the Activated Charcoal by Carbon Coco. I'm sure you've probably seen this on your feed from your favourite influencers but does it actually work or should you save your money?  Keep reading to find out (and also why I've stopped using this)!

Carbon Coco was super lovely and sent me this a while back to try out otherwise I wouldn't be reviewing it right now because girlllll this kit cost AUD$89.95 (£50.90)! Thank god it's currently half price for AUD$44.95 (£25.43). I don't think I could justify spending so much on charcoal powder, also because I'm quite sceptical towards these kinds of products.


Some quick info for you~

  • Activated charcoal is oxidised charcoal, designed for medical use; so it's completely safe if you accidentally consume some
  • Has adhesive properties that can be used to remove external stains to naturally whiten and polish teeth
  • Can help to reduce gum disease, remove plaque, deodorised and prevent bad breath

The Ultimate Carbon Kit contains:

  • Activated Charcoal Tooth Polish
  • Activated Charcoal Toothpaste
  • Bamboo Bristles Toothbrush

How To Use?

You simply wet the toothbrush, dip it into the charcoal powder, brush your teeth for 2 minutes and rinse it out when you're done. Wa-la~ Here is my demo using it!


Review:

When this arrived, I was super excited, opened it immediately and gave my teeth a good scrub. I didn't have stained teeth to begin with, but hellooo who doesn't want whiter teeth?

The charcoal is orderless and didn't have any taste which is good, imagine if they put a twisted on it and added some flavour to it, yum! It has a gritty feeling when brushing. The powder is MESSY and you can see everywhere thanks to it being pitch black. Be careful when spitting it out after brushing, it will get all over your sink and you'll have to rinse it. Luckily it doesn't stain and washes away easily.

However, it's a pain in the ass to rinse out the charcoal, there's always some gets stuck in your gums because of how fine the charcoal. I like to use the charcoal toothpaste to help get rid the stuck charcoal and for further whitening.

After my first time using it, I could instantly see my teeth were whiter. It wasn't pearly white but it was definitely slightly whiter by a shade. Excited by the results I used the polish for almost a week hoping to get my teeth as white as possible. Ha ha ha this is where things go major downhill.


The more I used it my gums got increasingly sensitive. Carbon Coco hun, this is not what I signed up for. I had to take a break from using it because it started to make my gums bleed. NOT OKAY. I think it's probably because you can't fully rinse away all the charcoal from your gums or the charcoal irritates your gum. I tried it again after getting my gums checked with my dentist (not at a pretty price tag) and my gums started to swell up again after using the charcoal. The bleeding and swelling it caused is why I had to stop using it. Thankfully everything is okay now!

Also the more I used it, I didn't notice my teeth get anymore whiter, I feel like the charcoal only works up to a certain point and stops after whitening a shade or 2. I was so disappointed because I liked it at first but the more I used it, the negatives increased!

Andddd before I forget - I liked the toothbrush, the bristles were fine and soft. I am not a hard toothbrush kinda girl! The toothpaste was okay, I wish it was mintier so that I could get that super fresh feeling afterwards. It's not worth the £15 price tag.

Overall, it works slightly but don't expect to be to looking like Simon Cowell afterwards. Personally, I feel the cons outweigh the pros effects, so I can't and won't recommend this. However, if you're still very keen on trying activated charcoal despite knowing the cons, Superdrug has their own charcoal range and the polish retails for £7.99 that you could try out because investing in a more expensive one.

TL;DR

Pros:

  • It works, slight whitening up to a shade or 2
  • 100% Natural teeth whitening method, no chemicals involved
  • Charcoal has no flavour
  • Toothbrush is good

Cons:
  • Abrasion can potentially damage your enamel
  • Results won't be pearly whites
  • Messy
  • Can make your gums bleed and swell up

*Disclaimer: complimentary product

2 comments:

  1. Great review, I really like your honest points about it, since I've been hearing a lot about the charcoal toothpaste, however I wear braces so I think I have to wait a little more to try it out! :)

    By the way, my brand new post is up on the blog, I would appreciate you visit! :)

    xoxo,
    Jessica
    What To Style

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! my boyfriend has braces and he found a lot of charcoal stuck in them so deffo recommend you to try them when its off ^^

      Delete