There are a few good brands of sustainable vegan toothpastes. What you choose is up to you. You could use fluoride as a safety guard. Or go ‘au naturel’ and omit it, preferring instead to protect enamel by saying no to cakes, and having tea without sugar!
Green People makes good toothpastes with natural ingredients sold in several flavours, plus children’s versions (spearmint or mandarin). These tubes are made from sugar-cane so are easy to recycle (it’s mixing materials that causes the problems – note to Pringles: cardboard, metal and aluminium).
If you live with pets, never use toothpastes with xylitol (just a tiny sliver or crumb of anything made with this sweetener could be lethal – even if licked toothpaste from around your mouth or a sink). Note this brand’s gum contains xylitol, so avoid near pets.
If you are pregnant/nursing or have medical conditions, go for unscented over ones made with essential oils.
Orthodox dentists say we need fluoride to strengthen enamel, but holistic dentists say if you don’t eat sugar, you don’t need this mineral (usually recycled from the phosphate fertiliser industry) as it has health concerns like mottled teeth and bone cancer (a small amount can kill a child, if swallowed). It’s true that Ireland has been fluoridating tap water for decades, with no good results.
Terracycle offers a free recycling scheme (sponsored by industry) at drop-off points. All your old toothpaste tubes are sent off, to make into recycling bins and park benches.
Floe is a fresh brand created by a team of dentists, engineers and scientists. This payapa-whitening toothpaste is also sold in sugar-cane tubes (with prepaid recycling labels) and whitens naturally with papaya fruit.
Georganics (code AWIN15 for 15% discount) offers jar toothpastes (plus powder & tablets sold with bamboo spatulas, in several flavours plus charcoal to whiten. Made from coconut oil, kaolin clay, shea butter and essential oils – these don’t foam and taste different, but work well. Avoid their gum, it contains pet-lethal xylitol (not worth the risk if dropped).
