Leigha Staffenhagen
Brushing your teeth is the activity that both starts your day and ends your day. So why not use a toothpaste that you love? While the big oral hygiene brands are dependable and well known, they aren’t always the most natural products available on the market.
Natural toothpaste offers the same benefits of traditional toothpaste without a laundry list of potentially hazardous ingredients written in tiny print on the back of the tube. If you’re looking to make the plunge into the natural toothpaste world but aren’t sure what brand you want to try out, keep reading!
In addition to a review of the toothpaste, I’m including the EWG rating of each product. EWG’s Skin Deep Cosmetics Database rates products on a scale of 1-10 to determine their overall safety and ingredient hazard score. Essentially, the lower the score, the better. I have found this tool incredibly helpful to make myself a more informed consumer, and you can learn more about the project here.
While I myself have only just started testing out different brands of natural toothpaste, I’ve done the research for you on the other major brands – whether that be consulting with friends or reading a multitude of Amazon reviews. Now all you’ll need to do is pick one!
Tom’s Of Maine Toothpaste
Perhaps the most well-known natural toothpaste, Tom’s of Maine comes in a wide variety of flavors and is available in just about every drug store. Made with fluoride derived from the natural mineral fluorspar and always free of artificial flavors, this toothpaste is sure to deliver all the benefits of traditional toothpaste without the nasty chemicals.
Tom’s of Maine also has an enamel strengthening formula, the only one of which is accepted by the American Dental Association. Now that’s impressive, huh?
Coconut Oil Toothpaste
Now that we’re all well aware of the healing properties of coconut oil, what about coconut oil toothpaste? I was a little skeptical too. And while I personally haven’t tried it myself, I think it’s definitely worth a shot. Amazon reviewers rave that the taste is pleasant and doesn’t have a nasty aftertaste.
Made of all natural ingredients, fluoride-free, and alcohol-free, rest assured this formula is the real thing. If you were considering transitioning to brushing with pure coconut oil, try this one first. Who knows? You might just like it more.
EWG Data Unavailable
Jason Toothpaste
If you read my natural shampoo article, you already know that I’m a huge JASON fan. They offer just about every natural hair/body care product, and they aren’t lacking in the oral hygiene department either. Made of all natural ingredients, fluoride-free, and spearmint flavored, this toothpaste will leave your mouth nice and fresh, and of course, clean.
JASON products are known for lacking a lot of typical body care ingredients in all of their products, like sodium lauryl, gluten, preservatives, artificial colors, artificial sweeteners, and propylene glycol. It’s perfect for those of us wanting to kick those bad habits out of our lives!
Desert Essence Toothpaste
Who doesn’t love tea tree? Fresh, fragrant, a little bit zingy, tea tree is perfect for a lot of things, and freshening your breath and cleaning your teeth is just one of those. Flouride, SLS, and gluten-free, this Desert Essence formula is praised for its minty taste and as one Amazon reviewer said, its “cure for chronic cankers”.
Nature’s Gate Toothpaste
Available in both Creme de Peppermint and Creme de Anise, this option is vegan, non-GMO, gluten-free, carrageenan-free, soy-free, fluoride-free, paraben-free, and even more. Phew, so with all those ingredients missing, you might be wondering what even is in this formula?
The cool thing about this toothpaste is that it has a combination of vitamin C and baking soda to act as a gentle abrasive to really tackle that pesky plaque. Extracts from carrots and calcium ascorbate provide the toothpaste with lots of extra calcium, which is, of course, always a good thing when it comes to your pearly whites.
EWG Skin Deep Score: 2-3 (only company-wide score available)
Dr. Bronner’s Toothpaste
I. Love. Dr. Bronners. Seriously! Nothing compares to this brand and their products! Available in peppermint, cinnamon, and anise, you’re sure to find the right flavor for your personal taste. Made of 70 percent organic ingredients and featuring coconut oil and peppermint oil, not only does it taste great, but it does the hard work for you.
Amazon reviewers mention that this is one of the best natural toothpaste on the market, and I personally have had a good experience with the product. While it does take awhile to get used to the taste after using traditional super minty toothpaste for 23 years, after a few weeks you don’t even notice a difference. In fact, it truly is difficult to tell the difference in flavor between this option and traditional toothpaste.
And of course, I have to mention that my teeth feel just as clean as they ever have, and I can rest easy knowing I’m supporting an excellent company that only uses fair trade ingredients.
Ginger Citrus Organic Toothpaste
Being that this is the first USDA certified organic toothpaste, of course, this product caught my eye. Certainly not your traditional peppermint toothpaste, Amazon reviewers love the ginger-citrus flavor.
Made with baking soda to naturally whiten teeth, kick bad breath to the curb, and help with plaque removal, this fluoride-free option is certainly worth giving it a shot.
EWG Data Unavailable
Weleda Calendula Toothpaste
Free of traditional toothpaste ingredients, Weleda delivers taste and effectiveness. But be advised, this paste is different than most every toothpaste available on the market. One Amazon reviewer compares the texture to that of gel covered in salt – a much more gritty texture than that of traditional creamy, gel pastes. I personally haven’t tried toothpaste with this kind of formula, but I’m always open to something new.
Containing extracts of calendula and myrrh, this product is peppermint-free and flavored with fennel. It might sound weird, but there are some customers out there that would disagree with you.
EWG Skin Deep Score: 3 (Only salt toothpaste data available)
