Wednesday 14 March 2012

Home made Toothpaste

Trying to get rid of as many chemicals as possible from our daily life has led me to give home made toothpaste a go. I researched many recipes online, searching for all the pros and cons, looking for the simplest ingredients with the most benefits and found this one works best for us.


These are the four ingredients I have gone with, most of the recipes I have seen start with equal amounts of bicarbonate of soda and coconut oil. so, if you use one tablespoon of coconut oil you will need one tablespoon of bicarbonate of soda and mix together. Bicarbonate of soda is also used in conventional toothpaste for the cleaning abilities it has and coconut oil, from what I have read, is anti bacterial, anti fungal and has some tooth and gum benefits.


This is what it looks like after mixing, at this point we added a teaspoon of ground xylitol to make it slightly sweeter but this is optional really and either a few drops of peppermint oil or extract of peppermint. Some recipes use stevia instead of xylitol, both come naturally from plants and both have some benefits. This makes a firm toothpaste and the consistency depends a lot on the temperature in the house due to the coconut oil.


Then store, at first I used the little pots you can see above as I only made up a small amount but having decided we really like it and intend to keep using it I have now made it in a larger quantity so it is being stored in a small mason/kilner jar. Due to sensory problems I have never really liked the way conventional toothpaste foams up in your mouth and this home made toothpaste doesn't foam at all. I have also found the taste mellows slightly after the first day, it was a little zingy the first day I made it.

** If you have been thinking about doing something similar, I would recommend researching both the ingredients in conventional toothpaste and the many home made recipes out there.

9 comments:

  1. you did it! looks great. i've been really enjoying a bit of calcium carbonate (chalk) in ours, it makes it a bit more toothpaste-y in consistency, which the kids like, and less prone to melting on a hot day! x

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    1. yes finally made some, I will have to see how much the coconut oil melts in the summer, if it does I may add some calcium carbonate too. Thank-you for the advice :D

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  2. Oh we might have to try this! My husband is really sensitive to what they put in store bought toothpaste. He kept getting mouth sores that would last FOREVER. When he switched to burt's bees toothpaste the sores stopped but that stuff is expensive. So homemade toothpaste might be in our future!

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  3. That's so cool! And very industrious of you. :)

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  4. I've never thought of doing this! That's an interesting comment as well about mouth ulcers, my OH gets them all the time too...I wonder if it's connected.

    Thanks for the comment on my blog The Ana Mum Diary :)

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  5. Wow - I'd love to read an update on this now that you've been using it (or maybe not?) for a while.

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    1. Hello Hannah, we are still using the toothpaste and have been since January. I love it, feels good while using it and leaves the teeth very clean. :)

      Thank-you for reading.

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  6. Trying this tonight! Thank you so much! We have been gradually changing all of our products from personal to household cleaners and making our own.. I am down to toothpaste and conditioner. Now I just need a good conditioner recipe :)

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