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ADA Seal

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ADA Seal of Acceptance Dental Products
©Alekso94/Shutterstock.com
ADA Seal - Accepted by The American Dental Association
The ADA Seal of Acceptance

The American Dental Association recently launched a new website at ADA.org/Seal.  It is a re-vamped site that discusses the American Dental Association Seal of Acceptance.

They even made an easy-to-access list of every single product that has received the ADA seal.  I’d like to think that maybe they were jealous of the full list of products receiving the ADA Seal that I published a few months ago!

The new website has many new features.  For example, if you’ve ever wanted to know what it takes for a product to get the ADA Seal of Acceptance, the ADA now provides downloadable PDF files that let you see exactly what is required for a product to gain the seal in a certain category.

For example, if you’ve ever wondered what it takes for a sugar-free chewing gum to get the ADA Seal, you can find out by viewing this PDF file.

You can view and download all of the other requirements from the ADA Seal: Guidelines for Product Acceptance Page here.

ADA Seal Videos

There is also a video page that contains many videos about the seal, including the whole process that a product has to go through to obtain the ADA Seal:

ADA Seal Videos Page

ADA Seal Product Comparison Page

ADA Seal Product Comparison Page

Another feature that I found interesting was that the ADA now has a full description of all products that are given the ADA Seal.  This allows them to provide a compare page where you can compare the many different products that have received the ADA Seal.  For example, if you wanted to compare Colgate Total to Crest Pro Health, you can view this page which I included as a screenshot to the right of this text so you can get an idea for how the tool works.

Questions or Comments?

The site contains many other features that I didn’t mention here, but you can check them all out by visiting the new ADA Seal site at ADA.org/Seal.

I think that this resource is a great addition to the ADA’s new website.  It allows consumers to fully research products with the ADA Seal and to fully understand why a product has received the seal.

Before this new site, it seemed that consumers had to blindly accept the fact that a product received the seal.

Do you have any questions or comments about this new resource from the American Dental Association?  I’d love to hear what you have to say and answer any questions you may have in the comments section below.  Thanks for reading!

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Products with American Dental Association Seal
©Natalia Gaak NWH/Shutterstock.com

Not many people are aware that the American Dental Association keeps an updated list on their website of all of the dental products that have received the ADA Seal of Acceptance.

You can view and print the entire list of ADA Accepted dental products here in PDF format.

When people think of the ADA Seal, the first product category to come to mind is usually toothpastes.  However, the toothpaste category came in second place.  There are more than twice as many mouth rinses than toothpastes that carry the ADA Seal.

Below you can find a list of all the categories and how many products in each category have received the ADA Seal of Acceptance.

The 15  Categories of Dental Products that carry the ADA Seal

ADA Seal of Acceptance1 – Mouth Rinses.  143 different brands of mouthwash qualified for the ADA Seal.

2 – Toothpastes.  65 toothpastes currently carry the ADA Seal.

3 – Fluoride Mouth Rinses.  44 brands of fluoride mouthwashes qualified for the ADA Seal.

4 – Toothbrushes.  34 different toothbrushes received the ADA Seal.

5 – Floss.  30 different brands of floss qualified for the ADA Seal.

Even if you’re using ADA approved floss, you can still make these 10 mistakes when you floss.

6 – Chewing Gum.  5 different brands of chewing gums qualified for the ADA Seal.

7 – Fluoride Gels.  4 brands of fluoride gel qualified for the ADA Seal.

8 – Denture Adhesives.  3 denture adhesives qualified for the ADA Seal.

9 – Water Filters.  2 water filters carry the ADA Seal of Acceptance.  I wondered why a water filter would get the ADA Seal.  It turns out that the PUR water filters reduce levels of contaminants in water while not reducing the level of tooth-protecting fluoride.

10 – Canker Sore Pain Relief Ointments.  2 canker sore pain relief ointments qualified for the ADA Seal.

11 – Plaque Disclosing Mouth Rinses.  Only 1 plaque disclosing mouth rinse, Listerine Agent Cool Blue Tinting Rinse, qualified for the ADA Seal.  Unfortunately, I don’t think it was deserved as Listerine Agent Cool Blue does not disclose plaque; it simply tints all of the teeth blue.

To see what my teeth looked like after rinsing with Listerine Agent Cool Blue, read the article Listerine Agent Cool Blue Doesn’t Disclose Plaque.  If you want to find plaque disclosing solutions that actually show you where the plaque is on your teeth, read the article How Plaque Disclosing Tablets Can Help You Brush Better.

12 – Denture Pain Relief Ointment.  Only 1 denture pain relief ointment, Benzodent Analgesic Denture Ointment, qualified for the ADA Seal.

13 – Emergency Tooth Preservation Products.  Only one product got the ADA Seal in this category, Save-A-Tooth.

To learn more about how to use the Save-A-Tooth System, read the article What to Do When Your Permanent Tooth Gets Knocked Out.

14 – Interdental Cleaners.  Only one brand of interdental cleaners, Stim-U-Dent Plaque Removers, qualified for the ADA Seal.

15 – Dentist-Dispensed Teeth Whitening Gels.  Only 1 brand of teeth whitening gel, Opalescence Whitening Gel 10%, qualified for the ADA Seal of Acceptance.

Does the ADA Seal Mean Everything?

As I stated above, there are many great plaque disclosing tablets/solutions that don’t have the ADA Seal while the one that does only tints your teeth without showing you where the plaque is!

Usually the ADA Seal indicates that a product actually does what it is supposed to do (is effective) and is safe.  You can read more about the ADA Seal in this previous article: The ADA Seal of Acceptance: Everything You Need to Know.

Do you have any questions, comments, or concerns about the ADA Seal or products that have received it?  I’d love to hear what you think in the comments section below.  Thanks for reading!

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ADA Seal of Acceptance Toothpaste on Brush
©Rasulov/Shutterstock.com

The American Dental Association’s Seal of Acceptance can be found on many dental products ranging from denture adhesives to toothpaste.  There are over 300 products that currently carry the ADA Seal of Acceptance.

ADA Seal - Accepted by The American Dental Association
The ADA Seal of Acceptance

The ADA Seal of Acceptance was started in 1930 to help consumers find out what products actually are effective at doing what they claim to do.

Old Toothbrush Advertisement from 1913
An Old Toothbrush Advertisement

At that time there were lots of new products being developed.  Many of the products claimed to do everything from cleaning your teeth to making you look 20 years younger.  The ADA created the seal to allow consumers to see that the claims on seal-awarded products had been validated by research and testing.

The ADA Seal of Acceptance is not a government program, it is run by the American Dental Association.  In fact, in 1984 President Ronald Reagan praised the ADA Seal program by giving the ADA a certificate of commendation.  Not all industries are able to regulate themselves so carefully without necessitating the creation of a government oversight agency.

How Does a Product Receive the ADA Seal of Acceptance?

In order for a product to receive the ADA Seal of Acceptance, it has to undergo lots of testing to make sure that it actually does what it says it will do.

The company that makes the product must submit the product information insert, ingredient lists, results of the research supporting the products effectiveness, provide evidence of good manufacturing processes, submit all packaging and advertising information about the product to the American Dental Association.

The ADA will then review the pertinent information.  Here is what the ADA has to say about the process:

More than 125 consultants, including members of the ADA’s Council on Scientific Affairs and ADA staff scientists, review and declare oral care products safe, effective and worthy of the ADA Seal. The consultants represent all fields relevant to evaluating dental products, including dental materials, microbiology, pharmacology, toxicology and chemistry. In some instances, the ADA may conduct or ask the company to conduct additional testing. Only after a product has demonstrated its safety and effectiveness will the ADA Council on Scientific Affairs award the Seal to that product.

You can view a complete list of the ADA Seal of Acceptance testing criteria on the ADA’s website.

How is the ADA Seal Different from the FDA Approved Seal?

FDA SealIf a product is FDA approved, it doesn’t mean that it is effective for dental use.  It simply means that the company has obtained permission from the FDA to manufacture and sell the product in the United States.

The ADA Seal of Acceptance on the other hand is much more comprehensive than the FDA seal of approval and actually tests the product to ensure that it does what it claims to do.

How to Find Products that are ADA Seal Accepted

There is a simple search form that you can use on the American Dental Association’s website to search for ADA-accepted products.

The following types of products can all carry the ADA Seal, provided the manufacturer has applied for it:

  • Artificial Saliva
  • Chewing Gum
  • Denture Adherents
  • Denture Cleansers
  • Floss and Interdental Cleaners
  • Mouth Rinses
  • Toothbrushes
  • Toothpaste

Is a Product Harmful If It Doesn’t Have the ADA Seal?

There are many dental products that do not contain the ADA Seal of Acceptance.  This does not necessarily mean that they are bad.  They could be good products, but perhaps the manufacturer didn’t have the money to go through the process of obtaining the seal.  Perhaps the company doesn’t think that they need the ADA Seal to sell their product.

It could also be a “homeopathic” product that makes claims that may not be scientifically sound.  These products cannot obtain the ADA Seal of Acceptance because claims have to be backed up by scientific evidence.

I’m sure there are many more reasons why a product may not have the ADA Seal.  However, if a product is harmful, it will usually be forced off the market by a governmental regulatory agency.

ADA Seal of AcceptanceUPDATE: 3/28/2011

Here is a version of the ADA Seal that has been used as recently as 2006.  You may still see it around, so I figured that I would keep it here for informational purposes.

Note that this is simply to illustrate what the ADA Seal of Acceptance looks like, so you can make more informed choices as a consumer.

The ADA does not endorse this page and is not affiliated with Oral Answers in any way.

Do you have any questions about the ADA Seal of Acceptance?  Leave a comment below!

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