Thursday, March 26, 2009

The Best Homemade Toothpaste!

I have made toothpaste only a couple of times recently and found/created a wonderful blend this morning.  

Okay, your thinking 'homemade toothpaste?', Come On!  But, do you realize how many harmful chemicals are in standardized toothpaste?  Some of these horrible chemicals are Sodium Lauryl Sulphate(SLS), Triclosan, diethanolomine and Isopropyl Alcohol.  Did you know Flouride can be fatal for children when consumed in high dosages?

Want more info?  Heres a great easy list from the Chicago Tribune.

Okay, there are some safe ones out there but be careful, even the standard toothpaste by Toms of Maine has SLS in it.  We have been using one called Xyliwhite and love it, but its pretty expensive in my mind at 3.75 a tube PLUS shipping.

Here is my version, give it a shot, we really think its wonderful!



Erins Yummy Toothpaste

Ingredients;
baking soda appx 1/4 cup
xylitol appx 1+ Tbs
salt appx 1/2 tsp
liquid glycerine appx less than 1/4 cup
essential oil 1-2 ml (maybe 1/4 tsp?)

(these are all very approximate as I dont write my toothpaste recipes down, really I just go by taste and feel.  Its not a science, trust me!)


Directions; 
Pour baking soda in a bowl, add salt and xylitol(I ground up the xylitol with my pestle and mortar as the first batch this morning was too grainy).  
Drizzle in the glycerine till you get a toothpaste like consistency.  
Add essential oils to taste.  

I made a cinnamon version earlier today that was so cinnamon-y it made my tongue numb so be careful, that was also due to a lot of testing!  My second batch, the white one, turned out perfect!  Crushing the xylitol was really key to a perfect product, and so was lots of peppermint oil!  If it was in a tube nobody would even know it was homemade!  

Oh, except it doesn't foam.  I have been using natural toothpaste so long I forgot that companies use the SLS and other foaming agents in theirs.  So, yes, you may miss the messy foaming over sensation and huge mess in the sink.  Your welcome.

I store mine in baby food jars and we just dip our dry toothbrush into it before each use.  If you are concerned about the cleanliness of this just keep half a popsicle stick in the jar for sanitary spreading, or make each family member their own jar.

I have not calculated the cost of this but I can assure you it is minimum.  The initial cost of some of these supplies is certainly a factor but once you have them they should last for many, many years.  I purchase my essential oils and glycerine from a local to me and wonderful company called Brambleberry.  I highly recommend them as they always have the very best prices (I know as I compare often always trying to get the best deal), they ship super fast plus the business is run by a regular women, just like me and you.

I got my xylitol from my mother who probably ordered it from iHerb where she gets all of her natural supplements and products, at least the ones I don't make for her!  Im sure any health food store or many grocers would carry this as well.  Check in the natural baking section by the sugars.

The xylitol is a very important ingredient in this product as it has been shown to fight cavities better than fluoride and even has REVERSED cavity deterioration in many studies.  Actually, my mother is an example so I am a true believer.  

Go now,  make some toothpaste and impress your family!  Go on!

11 comments:

Rachael said...

I love this post Erin! Thank you for the great info...I will definitely be doing this at some point in the future.

Anonymous said...

Hi Erin, I just wanted you to know that you inspired my blog today-so Thx!

Also, I love all your recipes for homemade stuff that is better for us to use everyday.

Is there a way you could do a quick post for my readers that includes all your past posted recipes for household cleaners, toothpaste, etc?

It would be SO greatly appreciated!
Thx bunches!
Shari.

Anonymous said...

Thanks honey, I used it last night. It is awesome. Awesome. I can't wait to get Marty & Sean's review. Perfect balance of ingredients and very pleasant, as well as the consistency is right on. I will let you know what they say soon! oxoxxo mom

HillsofAcademe said...

I just started making toothpaste for my kids. I use a similar recipe as the one you give. Although the baking soda taste is a little strong for them, they can handle it because of the sweet taste of glycerine and xylitol. I flavored mine with orange oil. Just an idea for you or others that may be interested - I put my mix in a pastry bag and piped it into a "lotion" squeeze bottle. (An inexpensive storebought, never used, empty lotion bottle found in cosmetic section)labeled it, and made it look "fun" for the kids. I'm a big fan of homemade and glad the toothpaste is so easy to make!

Unknown said...

I want to try this but where do I get the ingredients?

Shalom,
Melissa

valley view farm said...

I buy my ingredients from multiple different sources;

vegetable glycerine from Brambleberry (online)
baking soda; grocery store
salt; grocery store;
squeeze bottle; MMS The Sage (online)
Xylitol; iHerb (online)
essential oils; Brambleberry (online)

Wow, that is not practical cost wise, is it?? Especially after shipping...

I think I just might create a simple kit and post it on my Etsy site.... I need to order more bottles anyway. Give me a week and I will post something here to notify you!

Annie said...

Thanks - looks great and love your blog - I'm a little surprised you'd use the yucky iodized salt and not a sea salt or grey salt, although I know those are expensive, if you're cutting out SLS and all that other crapola, regular processed table salt is a big one to cut out too, I'm sure you already know that just wanted to mention that natural sea salt would probably be a better alternative - off to make my toothpaste! thanks!

Anonymous said...

Awesome recipe! I just made some, and I love it.

A little hint for those of you who don't have any squeeze bottles handy - you can scoop it into a ziploc freezer bag, snip off a tiny bit of the corner, and squeeze out onto your toothbrush.

Anonymous said...

Curious: I wonder if there is a way to use Stevia Leaf in place of the Xylitol?

Anonymous said...

Hi there,
I realize this is an old post (almost a year old!), but I've been on the hunt for a homemade toothpaste recipe and yours looks great. :) I think I will give it a shot this week-end. Do you suppose I could find xylitol and glycerin at my local health food store? Also, I read somewhere that someone was using an old hand soap pump as a toothpaste dispenser, and I thought that sounded like a great idea (and much more sanitary). Do you think your toothpaste is of a consistency that that might work? It looks like it might.
Thanks!!!
Alissa

valley view farm said...

Alissa- I actually think it might be too thick, the baking soda seems to want to settle to the bottom and acts like cement. You could try doing a thinner recipe??

Anonymous- You can try stevia. The reason we use Xylitol here is due to its cavity and bacteria fighting properties.

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