Composition

Toothpastes contain a variety of different ingredients. Essentially they are cleaning agents, binders, humectants, foaming agents, sweeteners, colorants, flavors, water preservatives, and special active ingredients. Some pastes contain additional ingredients.

Cleaning agents are insoluble inorganic substances that are contained in toothpastes in different concentrations and grain sizes. The percentage in a toothpaste is up to 60 percent. Since the cleaning bodies of the toothpaste are intended to support the cleaning effect of the toothbrush, but must not attack the enamel and are not perceived as sand in the oral cavity, the particle size of the toothpaste particles is selected to meet these conditions.

The average particle size is therefore 15 micrometers. The often mentioned slurry chalk is not used in toothpaste, but precipitated chalk. The difference is that whiting has too sharp edges and the precipitated chalk has rounded edges.

By selecting the appropriate cleaning agents, a maximum cleaning effect and a minimum of abrasion is achieved. The most common cleaning agents used in toothpastes are calcium carbonate or silicic acid. However, there are also a number of other substances that can be used as cleaning agents in toothpastes.

The binders are intended to give the toothpaste a smooth consistency by preventing the separation of liquid and solid substances. Alginates or methyl cellulose, among others, are used as binding agents. Of course, a toothpaste should not dry out, so moisturizers are added to it.

They guarantee that the paste always has the same consistency. Glycerine is used for this, but also sugar substitutes such as sorbitol or xylitol. Foam-generating additives are also called surfactants and are surface active.

At very high concentrations they can therefore also attack the oral mucosa. In order to prevent this, a maximum concentration of 2% has been set. At this concentration, foaming agents are absolutely harmless.

The surfactants dissolve dental plaque and thus make removal easier. In addition, they penetrate even into the hard-to-reach interdental spaces and make brushing more pleasant due to their foaming effect. The main foaming agent used is sodium lauryl sulfate or medicinal soap, which is neutral in taste and well compatible with other ingredients.

Of course, no sugar is used to sweeten the toothpaste, but saccharine or aspartate is added as a flavor corrector. Preservatives are used to achieve a long shelf life and to avoid bacterial infestation. Substances are used which are also used in the food industry.

Dyes are mainly used to produce multi-colored toothpastes or to cover up colored additives.Titanium dioxide, which covers colored pigments and makes the paste white, is ideal for the latter. Dyes also comply with food legislation. Today, most toothpastes are enriched with fluoride, but there are also many toothpaste manufacturers who add fluoride in particularly high concentrations to their creams.

For a long time, fluoride was considered THE miracle cure in caries prevention, but recently there have been more and more voices critical of the use of fluoride-containing toothpaste. Dentists actually assumed that fluoride forms a relatively thick, stable layer around the tooth and thus artificially hardens it. The particularly hard tooth surface then makes it difficult for the bacteria to form carious defects and thus damage the tooth.

For this reason, the additional use of fluoride tablets is recommended especially for children. Whether and to what extent fluoride can help against the development of carious defects cannot be conclusively determined. It is certain, however, that regular, careful oral hygiene is the first choice for caries prevention.

The use of fluorides should not be omitted, but neither should excessive use be made of them, because caries or not, too intensive fluoridation of the teeth can lead to unsightly deposits and white spots on the tooth surface. There are many people who consider the fluoride in toothpaste as dangerous. Therefore, there are many toothpastes that do not have fluoride as an ingredient.

However, the fluoride that is named as toxic is only harmful in quantities. People who got too much fluoride as a child get white spots on their teeth or it gets deposited in the bones. If the amount of the active ingredient is kept within limits, it is not dangerous.

That is why there are limit values for freely available toothpastes. For adults, only 1500 ppm may be contained in the toothpaste. This corresponds to 1500 milligrams per kilogram.

One should be careful with children, especially since some of them take fluoride tablets in addition. As soon as the first tooth has erupted, one should only brush once a day with the fluoride-containing toothpaste, and from the second year of life also twice. However, this should only contain 500 ppm.

The reason for this is that children cannot yet spit the toothpaste out properly and therefore swallow it. Adults should not swallow the toothpaste either. This way the fluoride only stays where it is needed.

And the danger of poisoning is minimized. The German Society for Tooth, Mouth and Jaw Medicine is convinced that the local application of fluoride in the area of the teeth is an important measure against caries. Studies indicate that people who take a lot of fluoride get less tooth decay.

In residential areas where drinking water was fluoridated, people had less tooth decay than in other areas. If you still want to use a fluoride-free toothpaste, you can use Bio-Repair, Weleda or tea tree oil toothpaste, for example. The reason why toothpaste with chlorhexidine as an ingredient was invented is that chlorhexidine loses its effect when combined with foaming agents.

The mouth rinse solution with chlorhexidine after brushing your teeth with a foaming toothpaste is not effective. You would have to wait about two hours between the units for the chlorhexidine to take effect. Therefore, toothpastes containing chlorhexidine should not contain foaming agents such as sodium lauryl sulfate.

Alternatively, toothpastes without foam can be used, which allow the subsequent chlorhexidine therapy. Such a toothpaste is for example “parodontax”. Toothpastes with a maximum of 0.2% chlorhexidine are freely available.

Examples are Curasept, Paroex from GUM or Perio Aid. Toothpaste containing chlorhexidine should not be used too often. Even in patients with gingivitis it is sufficient to use this toothpaste once a day.

It is much more important to use the correct brushing technique and brush your teeth at least 2 times a day. This is because chlorhexidine can cause irritation of the oral mucosa if used excessively. Pregnant women should discuss its use with their family dentist.

Coconut oil is considered a good home remedy in dentistry. It is often associated with gum inflammation. The advantage of coconut oil is that it has a good taste.

In addition, it is easy to use in toothpaste. Oil extraction has been a good method of killing bacteria in the oral cavity for a long time.The oil connects with the fatty parts of the bacterial wall. The bacteria are thus bound to the oil and either removed by spitting the oil out again or destroyed by dissolving the bacterial wall.

Another special feature of coconut oil is that it not only kills existing bacteria but also inhibits the growth of other bacteria. In the foreground are bacteria that cause gum inflammation or caries. There are some studies that prove that coconut oil has a clear advantage over other tested oils in fighting the pathogens.

It even helps Candida albicans go away. This is a yeast fungus that spreads on the skin and mucous membrane. In addition, coconut oil is a natural product and therefore shows little to no side effects.

One of the reasons for this is that the oil has a pH value of 8. After the meal the pH value sinks into acid and favors that bacteria destroy the enamel. However, if the oral environment is converted to neutral as quickly as possible, the enamel is not demineralized.

One effect of activated carbon is that it binds toxins and excretes them in the stool. Any toxins that come out of the food and are still in the mouth are thus removed. If toxins originating from food have already landed in the stomach, they can no longer be bound by the toothpaste, since the toothpaste is to be spat out and thus only works in the mouth area.

The activated carbon toothpaste promises to make teeth whiter. This also succeeds to a certain extent. However, the carbon cannot bleach the enamel.

The charcoal can only remove possible dirt particles and discoloration by rubbing off certain abrasive particles and scouring agents. The effect that the black toothpaste makes use of is the contrast. If you look in the mirror at the teeth that have been stained black by the application, they will be even whiter after spitting them out; especially because there may still be some color left on the lip and tongue.

The substance titanium dioxide contained in the toothpaste lies in small particles like a film on the tooth surface and makes the teeth appear lighter. However, the next time you take a sip of water or food, this film is removed so that the white teeth have the same color as before. Whether there are still residual dangerous hydrocarbons in the carbon that are harmful to the body has not yet been scientifically clarified.

You can find the main article on this topic here:

Toothpaste with activated carbon

The vitamin cannot be seen as a classic food supplement in the form of toothpaste. The toothpaste is spat out again after brushing the teeth. Thus it does not get into the gastrointestinal tract, where it would only be absorbed in the small intestine.

However, some substances are already absorbed into the body through the oral mucosa. Therefore, people whose absorption in the gastrointestinal tract is disturbed by diseases can still get the vitamin. Since the quantity is however very small, one will not reach the blood value as by a classical food supplement in the form of tablets.

Overall, it can be said that toothpaste containing vitamin B12 is not harmful and it is not harmful to test it if there is a deficiency. However, it is important to make sure that the toothpaste still contains fluoride, which protects the enamel from caries. Here fluorides are the first priority.

Every toothpaste should contain fluoride in any case. By incorporating them into the tooth enamel, they make it more resistant to acid attacks and thus prevent tooth decay. In combination with the calcium from saliva, they also promote remineralization.

The main inorganic salts used are sodium fluoride or sodium monofluorophosphate and the organic compound amino fluoride. In America, stannous fluoride has proven its worth. For the care of the gums, mainly anti-inflammatory agents are used.

These are allantoin, carbamide or extracts of chamomile, sage or rosemary. Vitamin A is also used as a skin-active agent in toothpastes. Toothpastes containing salt are supposed to tighten the gums through the effect of osmosis.

The taste, however, needs getting used to and they do not foam either.To reduce plaque and tartar, one takes antibacterial substances such as chlorhexidine digluconate, hexiditine or triclosan on the one hand, and pyrophosphates as an additive in toothpastes to inhibit the formation of tartar. In toothpastes for the treatment and prevention of sensitive tooth necks, strontium chloride, potassium nitrate or potassium chloride are added to the toothpastes. Flavors are important for the acceptance of the toothpaste.

They also have a slight antibacterial effect. Aromatic oils such as peppermint oil, wintergreen oil and many other aromas are preferred, whereby the peppermint taste is preferred by far. Cinnamon oil is not used in Germany because it can lead to allergies. In America it is however very popular.