I’ve been interested in making my own toothpaste for a long time. I’m not a fan of fluoridated pastes, and Tom’s is quite expensive. Add to that, neither of those two options contain remineralizing ingredients, which, as someone with terrible, terrible teeth, is important to me.
Still, making my own actual paste is a little more involved than I was willing to go with my first foray into the field. I mean, it’s kind of a commitment because to make using it easy, you need to buy squeeze tubes (call me a wimp – I don’t want to try to wrangle paste from a jar onto my toothbrush), Plus you’re using more expensive ingredients what with the essential oils and all. So I kept putting it off.
Then I went to a nearby trade show and ran across a booth where they were selling tooth powder. Genius! It was super, super expensive though (as many high quality hand-made products are), and contained a little more charcoal than I was comfortable with (I could just see it in my mind’s eye, running down the kid’s chins and onto their shirts). so I resolved to make my own.
I never did find a recipe I was completely happy with, so I after doing some research, and taking inspiration from several recipes, this is what I settled on, and why.
Bentonite clay draws toxins out of the body, and has the ability to absorbs heavy metals and other impurities. It also contains many minerals, and is alkalizing. See mountain Rose Farms for more informations.
Charcoal. Yes, I did add a little charcoal to my tooth powder. This one is probably pretty obvious as charcoal is fairly well known for its ability to draw toxins out of the body. Using it is a huge step toward having a clean mouth!
Baking Soda. We’re probably all familiar with using baking soda to clean teeth. Even commercial tooth pastes often incorporate it! So I’m sure it’s not surprise to see it here. It’s abrasives helps remove plaque and stains, plus, like bentonite clay, it is both alkaline, and packed with minerals.
Cinnamon is antibacterial, and helps give the tooth powder a pleasant flavor.
Xylitol helps the mouth keep a neutral ph, and prevents bacteria from sticking to the teeth. It also adds sweetness to the tooth powder. It is, however, completely optional. You can read more about it here.
Essential oils. Optional, but definitely beneficial, for antibacterial purposes, and for making the tooth powder taste good!
With just a little bit of upfront investment, you can make a LOT of tooth powder for the price of one tube of tooth paste. Don’t you just love how you can have the healthiest options for even less than the price of conventional equivalents when you’re willing to make it from scratch?
I can honestly say that I have been very happy with how my teeth feel and look after using this homemade tooth power for over a month.
Homemade Tooth Powder
Ingredients:
- 3 Tablespoons Bentonite Clay
- 1 Tablespoon activated charcoal (I opened 8 capsules)
- 1 Tablespoons Baking Soda
- 1 Tablespoons Cinnamon
- 1 Tablespoons Xylitol
- 10 – 15 drops of essential oil (peppermint or Thieves would be excellent!)
Instructions:
*This recipes makes four ounces by volume.
- Mix all ingredients together until well incorporated. A food processor is nice for making sure the essential oil are evenly distributed, but a fork works just as well if you work at it. 🙂
- Store in an airtight container.
To use: Dip your damp tooth brush into the container and brush! Rinse well.
If the possibility of germ sharing within the family bothers you, you may want to consider buying travel containers like these to store each family member’s personal tooth powder.
Since there are a lot of germ fighting ingredients in this recipe, and since my kids are still little enough that I dip their tooth brushes for them, I just keep one family container on our bathroom cabinet… for now.
Enjoy!
Recipes everyone can make!
Nourish your body with ingredients you already have in your kitchen!
Sarah says
I made my own without recipe, just based upon what I’d read on the back of several all natural tooth powders. Mine is almost exactly like yours except I added neems oil and peppermint oil to mine. I also added a pinch of pink himalayan sea salt. I did this because it not only helps with inflammation, but it increases salivation which cleans out bacteria. It isn’t abrasive because pretty much the instant you put it in your mouth you salivate to the point the salt goes liquid.