Question from Joan Christensen
Hi Debra,
Could you recommend to me some choices for natural toothpaste?
I found some with Nature’s Gate called Nature’s Gate Organics Peppermint Whitening Toothpast with Flouride 5 oz. for $6.99. Also comes in Raspberry flavor. Do you recommend Nature’s Gate products?
I did not see this company in you list.
Thank you.
Debra’s Answer
If you haven’t already, I suggest you read the post on this blog Q&A: Tooth Soap, which talks a lot about toothpaste and other methods of cleaning teeth as well.
Just because a company is not listed on Debra’s List doesn’t mean it’s not a good company. I have many websites waiting to be added, as I only have so many hours in the day… 🙂
That said, I just took a look at the Nature’s Gate website and right away there was a “red flag”–the statement “blending nature and science to benefit you and the Earth”. This generally means that the products are not 100% natural. That “sciene” part usually indicates the presence of man-made artificial ingredients.
Now I want to say some things here about these products, but I don’t want it to sound like I am picking on Nature’s Gate. These points apply to many so-called “natural” products.
You asked about toothpaste. I looked at the ingredients for Creme de Peppermint Natural Toothpaste, which is fluoride-free and contains baking soda. Both good. Also some natural flavorings, some herbal extracts, and sodium lauryl sulfate. Now sodium lauryl sulfate is one of those not-quite-natural ingredients that comes from a natural source, but is processed with chemicals. So it’s not, per se, 100% natural, but is considered natural by the natural product industry because it’s source is a plant ingredient. It’s about like adding pesticides to a plant, which is still considered natural to the natural products industry. Sodium laurel sulfate (SLS) is no longer considered safe and is being removed from many natural product formulations now. So, no, I wouldn’t put this toothpaste on Debra’s List. The best ingredient in this toothpaste is baking soda, so why not just brush your teeth with baking soda?
I also took a look at their new “organics” line. Now, if you look at the organic bodycare products on Debra’s List, you’ll find that most of the ingredients are organically grown. Nature’s Gate “Organics” Lavender & Aloe Nourishing Conditioner for All Hair Types has only one organic ingredient…the lavender. The rest are those not-quite-natural “science” ingredients.
I just bought Tom’s fluoride-free propolis and myrrh toothpaste, which was rated 0 on Skin Deep. Surprise! It contains SLS! Why did they rate it 0? How can I trust Skin Deep now?
COMMENT FROM DEBRA:
I don’t trust ANY organization to make a decision for me about a product. And none of you should trust me either. We each have our own criteria for choosing products, so each of us need to look at the ingredients for ourselves and make our own decisions.
Skin Deep rates many products 0 that I would not recommend personally. So what I use Skin Deep for is to find products and then look at the ingredients and rate them for myself. And that’s what I recommend you do too.
Another reason to double check products for yourself is that formulas can change faster than websites get updated. And new data becomes available on ingredients. It’s difficult to keep up with all this.
Evaluate everything for yourself and make your own decisions. This is why I really try to educate all of you instead of just picking products for you. There are many products in the world, and you need to know how to choose those that are not toxic for yourself.