looked at a brief history of toothpaste. We wrote about its development from the ancient Egyptians to the modern tube of toothpaste. This week we're going to take an even closer look at toothpaste. We'll pay homage to this extremely helpful part of oral health and break it down into its base components for you.
Fluoride
This key ingredient in most toothpastes is responsible for many of its preventative health properties. Many studies have found fluoride to be extremely effective at preventing tooth decay. Although it helps kill off some of the harmful bacteria in your mouth, its most helpful quality is its ability to remineralize your tooth structure and make it more difficult for bacteria to damage your teeth with their acid byproducts.
Abrasives
Toothpastes are available with varying levels of abrasiveness. Abrasives are used to remove food particles, stains, and plaque. Many of the most common ones include baking soda, silica gel, and magnesium carbonate.
Cleaning Agents
These make your toothpaste foam a bit when you're brushing your teeth. Not only do these cleaning agents, or detergents, help make cleaning your teeth easier, they also reduce the amount of friction and surface tension when your bristles come into contact with the tooth's surface.
Tooth Whiteners
Many toothpastes contain varying amounts of carbamide peroxide or hydrogen peroxide that are added to whiten the teeth. It's important to note that most toothpaste whiteners only remove surface stains, unlike many in-office teeth whitening treatments that work a bit differently and produce much more noticeable results.
Antibacterials
Antibacterial agents such as triclosan and cetylpryridinum chloride are added to toothpaste to fight the growth of plaque. This helps reduce your chances of gum disease and instances of tooth decay.
Thanks for Reading
Next time you pick up your toothbrush and squeeze that little white (or one of the many other colors) blob of paste on the bristles, think about all the parts that are about to go to work for your oral health. If you enjoyed our blog post this week, please consider liking us on Facebook or sharing our post with one of your friends. We love spreading the word about great oral health!