Monday, May 22, 2006

The Secret to White Teeth? Not Toothpaste!!!!

People are always asking the Fertilitybitch, For someone who drinks so much coffee and tea, you shore have some purty choppers--what's your secret, Crest Whitestrips?"

Puh-leeze. FertilityBitch is big on simplifying and keeping her hard earned moolah from the corporate maw. In the Korea of my parents, the toothbrush and toothpaste consisted of the index finger and a dish of sea or bamboo salt. So you didn't even need some toothbrush holder cluttering up the place.

I do consider myself a bit more modern and do use a commercially manufactured toothbrush of whatever free sample I happen to get from my (mercury-free) dentist. The magic toothpaste is called ARM & HAMMER BAKING SODA. Keeps the pearly whites pearly, bicarb balances the saliva pH. And, at 42, FertilityBitch boasts nary a cavity nor gum disease of any sort.

Toothpaste is not JUST another of those things corporations convince you that you need that you don't--it can actually be hazardous to your health. There are and can be all sorts of disgusting industrial chemicals in it. Let me just concentrate on one, to make my point.

Sodium laurel sulfate (SLS, and its cousins, sodium laureth sulfate, etc.) is an industrial chemical that makes things nice and frothy. Start looking at labels and you'll say, "But it's in almost everything! How can it be bad?" Well, check out the chemical/pesticide registrations web page and see out of all these countries, which ones register SLS for use in products toothpaste related and otherwise (hint: only one, can you guess which???), as the other countries (including Burkina Faso) seem to recognize that SLS belongs in a class of chemicals called nitrosamating agents, which are becoming well known for their ability to cause cancer!

FertilityBitch finds toothpaste generally unnecessary and STRONGLY suggests skipping even "natural" toothpastes for the sake of your health and the health of your loved ones and use that $ to buy a head of organic kale or something. Look what's in Tom's of Maine so-called Natural Toothpaste For Children, Silly Strawberry:

Glycerin, Water, Calcium Carbonate, Hydrated Silica, Carrageenan, Fruit Extracts, ***Sodium Lauryl Sulfate***, Sodium Bicarbonate

Feel free to do your own Google search on SLS and "toxic" and see what comes up--look especially hard at all the stuff from Europe, where they seem to worry a bit more about what all these chemicals eventually do to people...

Pour moi, I give that Tom's "Natural" a nice radioactive TOXIC SKULL and suggest you buy yourself a nice big box of baking soda (here's a bunch of other things you can do with baking soda, thanks to the excellent Eco-Chick site)

AND you can use your old toothpaste to polish your silver jewelry and stuff--it's just the right amount of abrasive to do the job without scratching.

52 comments:

Dan said...

Excellent. How long before I should notice a diference?

Green Fertility Marie said...

Hi Dan,

You may notice some subtle lightening in a few days, but give it a few weeks at the very least, I'd say. I've been brushing my teeth like this for over a year.

For quickest results add a swig of USP (food grade) hydrogen peroxide to the mix.

I also walk around and do other ablutions while the stuff is happily fizzing away in my mouth--very refreshing

Also, if you have a microfiber cloth (e.g., for facial exfoliation), rub the cloth pretty vigorously on your teeth to remove stains--I saw my teeth getting dull and it turned out it was just coffee stain...I could see it come off on towel. Geez!

Good luck, Smiley!

Mary said...

Do you just brush your teeth with baking soda and a regular toothbrush?

Green Fertility Marie said...

Yep! That's where the whiteness comes from. Thanks for stopping by!

Grace said...

hi, i was just wondereing how much hydrogen peroxide you add?

Green Fertility Marie said...

just enough to make a paste...

Jessica said...

Do you brush your teeth with baking soda everyday? How many times a day?

Green Fertility Marie said...

Yes, I just use it when I brush, approx 3 times/day

Anonymous said...

I always dreamed of having whiter teeth, thank you very much!

Anonymous said...

it does not work, why?.....

Green Fertility Marie said...

it works for me!

AV said...

Hi, I have been experimenting with this, but my breath still smells pretty funny! What are your recommended solutions for this?

Anonymous said...

My family has dubbed me "organic girl." But it just makes sense that any man made chemical hurts the body.
I do remember my grandma telling me to use baking soda though... Smart grammy!
2 questions:what is baking soda made of? And I just read that I can add peppermint oil for a more familiar taste and odor. If I mix baking soda, hydrogen peroxide, and pepermint oil, will my bathroom blow up?

Green Fertility Marie said...

It's made from sodium bicarbonate, which I think is naturally occurring. You can mix all those things together...it'll get very fizzy and refreshing. Just do'nt go too nuts on the ppermint oil--it can be caustic. Good luck!

Anonymous said...

Does the baking soda & hyrdogen peroxide wear away enamel at all? Do you have any recommendations for non toxic makeup?
Thanks!!

Green Fertility Marie said...

I've been using this combo for years and have no cavities.

We do run reviews of non toxic makeup. stay tuned.

Anonymous said...

you're a moron if people brushed their teeth like you they would have dirty teeth and smelly breath. you give poor people wrong information to benefit your bias views. why don't you show your face loser.

Anonymous said...

I believe in the cleaning and deodorising power of bicarb. I'd be a bit weary of putting hydrogen peroxide in your mouth. It's a strong bleaching agent. I don't know if a food grade one is available at the store. I don' know what foods it would be used in...??? Better not to do that at home, you could hurr your gums or you swallow it.

But bicarb is great!!

BeckySusie said...

I've been using baking soda as a whitener for a few years now, as well as hydrogen peroxide on and off. I brush with a paste of baking soda and water, and rinse with a solution of 50-50 peroxide and water. Actually the peroxide out of the bottle is already 3% (Topical Solution USP from the grocery store), so it's really a 1.5% solution of peroxide. I mentioned both of these to my dentist and he approved. My father's also been doing this for years.

Anonymous said...

My greatgrandad used only baking soda and salt all his life and had all his own teeth until he died at age 88. I can't use fluoride because of kidney disease and I'm allergic to SLS, so I've been relying on this mix for a while.

Green Fertility Marie said...

THANKS for the comment--very cool!

Anonymous said...

I have been using this combination for a while and it worked really well at first but it just doesn't seem to be working as good as it used to... Why is this?

Green Fertility Marie said...

It might not be the baing soda--it could be your saliva. Your pH determines a lot of what goes on in your mouth (e.g., if you will be prone to cavities or not) and that's determined by what you eat, if you're stressed, etc. In general, an alkaline pH is what you're striving for. Check out and see if your diet has changed at all...

Anonymous said...

This was an extremely effective sollution to my problems, i've always had teeth on the whiter side of things, but found i just wanted that extra brightness... your suggestion showed results on the FIRST day i've tried it! and that was just the baking soda! i dont know about the hydrogen peroxide yet, i'll look into that.
still though, why spend 40 on that whitening strip crap that thins your teeth and makes then sensitive, or put poison in your mouth when baking soda can clean and whiten for you?? Sure, it tastes nasty, but its worth the money and hastle saved.
Sheesh why didnt I think of it earlier ;)
THANKS!

Green Fertility Marie said...

Congratulations!

Anonymous said...

baking soda will not whiten teeth that have intrinsic stains. no amount of brushing will remedy this condition. DDS

Anonymous said...

baking soda will not brighten
teeth with intrinsic stains. no amount of brushing will. perhaps people should consult a physican about these issues.dds

Anonymous said...

It works I used it to douche and my kitty smells like a Carolina pine forest.

Anonymous said...

Hey, I made a past of ground Mentos and 7up and my teeth are blindingly white. Just swish it around your mouth for 3 minutes.

CaliGirl said...

I think it's great that you are giving people helpful suggestions. So many people are blowing money on all kind of teeth whitening products that are basically sub par to the good'ol baking soda.

Hydrogen peroxide is also very inexpensive and destroys the bacteria (germs) found on toothbrushes. Hydrogen peroxide for brushing kills bacteria in and around gums and teeth, slows bone loss around teeth, helps prevent heart disease caused by dental bacteria. Hydrogen peroxide kills the germs that cause gingivitis.

Brushing with hydrogen peroxide kills bacteria in and around teeth and gums, which stops or slows bone loss around teeth, and helps prevent heart disease caused by dental bacteria spreading to arteries. If you really don’t want to brush with hydrogen peroxide, at least wash and sanitize your toothbrush with hydrogen peroxide every day

Affordable Dental Tooth Whitening said...

omg! genius. and if those are your teeth in the pic then double genius. im going to try this!

Cheers,
Lannah

Anonymous said...

what about mouthwash,does it help?

Anonymous said...

things like baking soda and hydrogen peroxide work alright, white strips dont work at all

the best thing ive used is the kits denists use, you can buy them and do it yourself.

i got mine from EasyTeethWhite

Anonymous said...

white strips definitely work...if they don't work for you then maybe you aren't using them right or your teeth are beyond repair

Anonymous said...

I have heard that pure baking soda is much too strong for regular use & can actually dissolve your tooth enamel when used too regularly.

kate said...

@AV

To curb bad breath, add yogurt to your daily diet (plain, unsweetened). The good bacteria in yogurt help combat the bacteria that can cause bad breath.

Brandon said...

This worked so amazingly
thanks

GreenFertility said...

You're very welcome!

Anonymous said...

Its not good to brush with baking soda everyday. Since it can remove stains quite effectivly, means its powerful. Powerful enough to remove the enamel from your teeth. Its best to only use baking soda once every 2 weeks.

As for people who say they still have bad breathe, thats because the main contributor to bad breathe is your tounge. So you should brush your tounge regularly.

Anonymous said...

I second the statement that baking soda is effective, but the same reason that it is effective is also why it can be harmful. For people like me who have naturally thin teeth, the baking soda makes my teeth sensitive and if used too much can cause them to look bluish - a sign that the enamel is wearing down. Hydrogen peroxide however is not harmful (read Caligirl's comment above.) Just a warning that this solution may not be beneficial for everyone.

Matthew said...

I've been thinking about using hydrogen peroxide, but I hadn't even thought of baking soda until now. Thanks for the info. Oh, and I just wanted to add that I found it funny that an anonymous commenter was saying that you should show your face. Oh the irony.

GreenFertility said...

Hope it works for you Matthew!

Anonymous said...

how can you use baking soda on you're teeth when the substance its powder?

Anonymous said...

You (I assume it's you, and that you refer to yourself in the third person for some silly reason) recommend that your readers conduct a Google search, implying that a Google search is a scientific process and that search results are necessarily correct (again, silly). But, just for fun, here is a link that appears on the first results page, which explains how what you're saying here about SLS is nothing more than myth: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/07/common_ecomyth_sls.php

Anonymous said...

Oh the irony of the post above me. NOT EVERYTHING YOU READ ON THE INTERNET IS TRUE. You have to research, decide which evidence sways you most and then make up your own mind. THAT'S what she was trying to say; google it, the evidence is there.

For every article saying something gives you cancer, there'll be another one telling you that it prevents heart disease. Life, y'know?

Anyway, I think I might try this bicarb of soda business for myself. Not sure about using it everyday though - wouldn't it wear down your teeth?

GreenFertility said...

We also use a product called tooth soap...stay tuned I'll blog abt it. Our teeth look great.

Anonymous said...

Is it okay if you use mouth wash after? Or will that just hinder the effect of the baking soda.

BeautyHealthZoneBlog.com Editor said...

Well, I came across this post by accident. I have tried a number of toothpastes over the years and some of them make my mouth peel inside to the point where I can't even eat breakfast and some, particularly the arm and hammer with baking soda made my mouth feel funny, the best way to describe it is the feeling you get when you eat a raw lemon and I did not like the taste either, I could taste it on my tongue a long time after brushing. Anyway, I use Aloe Dent whitening and Sensodyne whitening mixed together and my teeth are pretty white.

I wrote about this in my blog and posted a picture I took with my mobile.

However, I do not smoke (never have), drink tea often but coffee less often. Smoking discolours the teeth pretty badly.

Also use a medium toothbrush not a hard one to keep your gums from receding.

sky22d said...
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GreenFertility said...

I use Bob's Red Mill aluminum-free--it's natural milled sodium bicarbonate...