Choosing zero waste toothpaste can help you reduce waste that goes into the bin. Every year millions of toothpaste tubes are sent to landfills because the squeezy tubes are difficult to recycle and aren’t generally picked up in curbside recycling schemes.
Pump action toothpaste containers are slightly different. These are made from a different type of plastic so is usually easier to recycle. Some mainstream brands are now starting to make recyclable tubes but most of these will still contain nasty ingredients.
Natural mouth care products can usually be found either as toothpaste, zero waste toothpowder or eco-friendly toothpaste tablet. Most come in glass containers, but some are available in recyclable tubes. Don’t forget to grab a zero waste toothbrush and zero waste floss as well.
- 1. Unpaste Toothpaste Tablets with Fluoride
- 2. Davids Toothpaste
- 3. Huppy Plastic Free Toothpaste
- 4. Uncle Harry’s
- 5. Georganics Natural Toothpaste and Powder
- 6. By Robin Creations
- 7. Hello Naked Paste
- 8. Butter Me Up Organics Toothpaste and Powder
- 10. Primal Life Dirty Mouth Toothpowder
- 11. Lucky Teeth Charcoal Zero Waste Toothpaste
- 12. Active Wow Toothpowder
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Zero Waste Toothpaste, 12 Brands to Know and Love
Let’s take a look at some of the best zero waste toothpaste brands you can find today.
1. Unpaste Toothpaste Tablets with Fluoride
Unpaste is made by a non-profit organisation in Germany and is one of the few sustainable toothpaste brands that use Fluoride. For more information on Fluoride in Zero Waste toothpaste scroll to the end of the post.
All Unpaste packaging is compostable at home or an industrial facility and their products are certified natural. That means that it doesn’t contain SLS, sodium saccharin, artificial colours, aluminium or nanoparticles. It’s a worry-free product, vegan and cruelty-free!
Ingredients: Microcrystalline Cellulose, Sodium Bicarbonate (baking soda), silica, Amisoft (sodium lauryl glutamate), Magnesium Stearate, Natural Mint Flavor from essential oils
Find them at Earth Hero or Etsy
2. Davids Toothpaste
Davids is made in the USA with 98% USA origin ingredients and packaged in a recyclable aluminium tube. It comes with a handy tube key that helps you to get every last drop out of the tube, no waste guaranteed!
It’s vegan, fluoride, sulfate and SLS free. As far as ingredients go it’s EWG verified with a score of 1, the lowest possible for EWG verified products.
Once you’re done with the tube just cut the top and bottom off, clean out the last bits of toothpaste and recycle in your curbside bin with other aluminium products such as drink cans. You can recycle the cap – but check locally if they recycle small items.
This zero waste toothpaste is slightly thinner than conventional toothpaste but works really well. It leaves your teeth nice and clean, what more do you need right?
Find them at Earth Hero or Eco Roots
3. Huppy Plastic Free Toothpaste
Huppy zero waste toothpaste will give you fresh breath while helping to protect the planet. This paste is made with clean ingredients such as essential oils, aloe vera and xylitol. It’s completely plastic-free and easily foams without having a chalky texture.
Each little pot contains 62 tablets and is specially formulated to remineralise enamel. It reduces sensitivity is vegan, cruelty-free, fluoride-free and non-GMO.
The container is refillable so purchase this tin once, and get a re-fill next time so you only have to buy the container once.
You’d be happy to know that Huppy donates 2% of its revenue to a range of sustainability projects.
Find them at Zero Waste Store
4. Uncle Harry’s
This brand is one of the most commonly recommended mouth care brands when it comes to the zero waste movement. They have been around for 25 years and are focused on creating natural and sustainable products.
Their mouth hygiene products deliver a wide variety of options such as tooth suds (which is a soap), zero waste toothpowder and toothpaste in a jar. Their products are pH balanced which is great as the acidity can damage your enamel. Flavours include Spearmint, Anise, Cinnamon, Peppermint and Mild Mint.
Their eco friendly toothpaste ingredients roughly include Bentonite clay, calcium carbonate, colloidal silver water, sea salt, ionic minerals, mustard seed and essential oils. Their zero waste toothpaste is gluten-free, glycerin-free, fluoride-free, and vegan.
Uncle Harry’s also makes tooth whitening kits and mouthwash so they are definitely one to investigate.
Find them on Amazon
5. Georganics Natural Toothpaste and Powder
Georganics makes a full range of natural oral care products which include amongst other things eco friendly toothpaste, toothpowder, mouthwash, toothbrushes and natural floss. They’re based in the UK and all packaging is zero waste consisting of glass, aluminium and cardboard.
Their zero waste toothpaste is blended with organic oils, is fluoride-free and SLS free and they produce a number of flavours including an activated charcoal option to help keep your pearly whites, well… white. There is an orange flavour, ideal for fussy little ones.
The glass bottle comes with a wooden applicator, which means you can keep your toothpaste bacteria-free if you stick to using the applicator.
Georganics zero waste toothpaste ingredients are calcium carbonate, caprylic & capric triglyceride, kaolin, Cocos Nucifera Oil, Butyrospermum parkii butter, diatomaceous earth, sodium bicarbonate, Mentha Piperita oil, tocopherol, limonene.
Find them on Amazon, Earth Hero or Ethical Superstore
6. By Robin Creations
By Robin Creations (BRC) makes a fantastic handmade remineralizing zero waste toothpaste. It does a great job at cleaning teeth and keeping gums healthy. It has a nice refreshing taste and contains no harmful chemicals.
Dig your wet toothbrush in the jar and scoop a small amount out, ready to brush. It’s even safe to swallow, but always best to spit out.
It’s made with natural ingredients and is slightly gritty. Calcium Carbonate gives it gently scrubbing power and coconut oil kills bad bacteria.
Find them on Etsy
7. Hello Naked Paste
Hello is a new kind of naturally friendly oral care, created using thoughtful ingredients so delicious you’ll rush to brush, or so they claim. All ingredients are responsibly sourced. They use activated charcoal (made from sustainable bamboo), to help whiten teeth and freshen your breath. The toothpaste tablet container is fully recyclable.
Hello also make toothpaste in a tube or naked without a tube, their tube option comes in a fluoride-containing version which you can get here, but unfortunately, their tubes aren’t currently recyclable.
When it comes to sustainable toothpaste for sensitive teeth, Hello is a solid product. But similar to the fluorinated option comes in a non-recyclable tube so it’s not a zero waste product in that case.
If you are not familiar with zero waste toothpaste tablets they are straightforward to use just place one tablet in the front of your mouth, chew it until there are no bits and then brush with a wetted brush as normal. Easy right?
Their ingredients are sorbitol, hydrated silica, xylitol, charcoal powder, xanthan gum, vegetable oil powder, flavour, Cocos Nucifera (coconut) oil, magnesium stearate, stevia rebaudiana leaf extract.
Find them on Amazon
8. Butter Me Up Organics Toothpaste and Powder
Butter Me Up Organics’ zero waste toothpaste is handmade and comes in a glass jar with a wooden applicator. It’s a chemical-free blend that promises to leave your teeth feeling polished and healthy. It contains baking soda, sea salt, calcium, essential oils and coconut oil which has wonderful and naturally occurring anti-bacterial properties and stops tooth decay.
Note that it’s salty tasting toothpaste. as it contains baking soda and sea salt to remineralize teeth.
Butter Me Up Organics make both zero waste toothpaste and powder. Their powder contains Kaolin Clay, Bentonite Clay, Baking Soda, Activated Charcoal, Ceylon Cinnamon, Calcium Citrate, Clove Oil, Myrrh Oil and Peppermint Oil (all organic of course).
Find them on Amazon
10. Primal Life Dirty Mouth Toothpowder
Primal Life was started by best selling author Trina Felber who wrote Beauty’s Dirty Secret. She is dedicated to creating products safe enough for her children to use, which makes sense to me!
Dirty Mouth Powder comes in a range of flavours including spearmint, bubblegum, cinnamon, peppermint, orange and black spearmint with activated charcoal.
Ingredients include Bentonite Clay, Activated Charcoal (Black formula ONLY), White Kaolin Clay, Baking Soda, French Green Clay, organic Essential Oil of choice. Monk fruit (sugar-free) in sweet formulas.
Primal Life also makes zero waste toothpaste, toothbrushes and a gum serum to promote healthy gums.
Find them on Amazon
11. Lucky Teeth Charcoal Zero Waste Toothpaste
Lucky Teeth is a family-owned business from the USA. They use pure and wholesome ingredients that aren’t harmful to people or the planet as they use a combination of natural ingredients to nourish and balance your mouth. Fortifying teeth, gums and removing stains from your teeth.
This toothpaste contains calcium carbonate and magnesium, bentonite clay for mild abrasion, birchwood xylitol from the USA to help clean teeth from plaque and tartar build-up. Baking soda to help neutralize acids, activated charcoal for whitening and organic essential oils from a nice fresh smelling toothpaste.
We love the flavour of this toothpaste as it has hints of cinnamon, clove and mint. And it’s a taste that kids love as well. It leaves your mouth feeling clean for longer and it’s fluoride-free, glycerin-free and gluten-free.
You won’t find any hidden ingredients here and products aren’t tested on animals in any way.
Shop Lucky Teeth
12. Active Wow Toothpowder
In all honesty, the name of this product is a little cheesy but it won’t take your breath smell cheesy at all. The product is black so might seem a little weird but the charcoal, as with some of the other products listed, is meant to help whiten your teeth so it might be worth the mess after all.
Zero waste toothpowders are pretty straightforward to use. Just wet your toothbrush and sprinkle the recommended amount of powder over and brush.
Active Wow’s ingredients are organic activated coconut charcoal, bentonite, sodium bicarbonate, coconut oil, mint flavour, orange seed oil. At the time of writing it was unclear what their ingredient sourcing policy is.
Find them on Amazon
Make your Own DIY Toothpaste
If you’d like to get a little crafty in the kitchen and cook up your own eco friendly toothpaste you can easily do so. This way you’ll know exactly what’s in it. Note that it won’t have been tested in a lab so you’ll have to take a leap of faith in that respect.
For recipes to make your own, have a look at this page from the Zero Waste Cartel or this one from goingzerowaste.com to get you started.
Ingredients in Conventional Toothpaste to Avoid
Besides the plastic, toothpaste can contain all kinds of nasties that you would be better without. Rinse and spit is always the best option to minimise any issues caused by toothpaste ingredients. As some ingredients can cause gastronomical discomfort.
Toothpaste can contain artificial sweeteners and colourants. It can also contain sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS). An ingredient that many of us are trying to avoid in hair care products already and can cause inflammation, dry mouth, gum irritation and canker sores.
The safety of food-grade Carrageenan is widely debated with a 2018 study concluding that more research is needed. This ingredient has been linked to gastrointestinal inflammation, ulcers and even colon cancer in laboratory animals. While the scientists are arguing about the safety of carrageenan I’d personally steer clear of it just in case.
Propylene glycol, is linked to damage of the central nervous system, liver and heart.
Triclosan has mostly been phased out luckily as it is linked to a decrease in thyroid hormones. It’s also linked to an increase in antibiotic resistance, as well as tumours in mice.
Fluoride in Zero Waste Toothpaste
Fluoride in toothpaste is a slightly controversial ingredient. It fights tooth decay in the right amount but can be problematic if you get too much.
Many countries add fluoride to their water supply and most conventional toothpaste contains fluoride. This means there is a chance you can get too much in certain areas.
Zero waste toothpaste with fluoride can be beneficial in some cases. But it’s best to check with your dentist to see if you need an extra boost through your toothpaste or if you are ok to go without as tooth decay is not pleasant by any means.
It is a good idea to check with your local water supplier regarding the amount of fluoride added to your water. In the UK the decision to fluorinate is with the local authorities and vary from one area to the next. So it’s best to check with your local authority directly. I for e.g. live in a non-fluorinated area so do tend to use fluorinated toothpaste for extra protection.
The only zero waste toothpaste with fluoride on our list is from hello and tablets from Unpaste above, you’d like to use fluoride toothpaste.
When it comes to the ingredient list on your tube, sustainable toothpaste that contains fewer ingredients can be equally effective. As it is the brushing action that cleans your teeth with a tad of scrubbing power added by the toothpaste.
Charcoal in Natural and Zero Waste Toothpaste
There is an increasing number of toothpaste brands that offer a charcoal option aimed at whitening teeth. Further research on charcoal in toothpaste is needed. So please proceed with caution as there are reports that the charcoal can accumulate in the cracks and crevices of older teeth, causing staining.
The effects of charcoal on restorations are also not known. It’s, therefore, best to speak to your dentist if you have concerns.
Using Essential Oils while Pregnant or while using Homeopathic Remedies
Please check with your healthcare provider before using products with essential oils while pregnant to ensure it’s safe for you. There are some who are concerned about using peppermint oil during pregnancy specifically. Small amounts may be fine but please check with a professional before switching.
As some products listed contain essential oils some brands recommend waiting 10 to 15 minutes after taking any Homoeopathic remedies. However, always please check with your Homeopathic practitioner before using products that contain essential oils. If you have a favourite brand please add them in the comments.
Xylitol Toxisity in Dogs
Be careful if you do use toothpaste that contains xylitol as this is highly toxic for dogs. If your dog or small puppy is exposed to xylitol within chewing gum or toothpaste, call your vet immediately.
FAQs
Conventional toothpaste often contains chemicals and ingredients such as triclosan and propylene glycol that can be harmful to you and to the planet. Most supermarket toothpaste also comes in a non-recyclable tube which means that will lead to a lot of waste thrown into landfills.
Fluoride in toothpaste is a controversial ingredient as it can become toxic in high quantities. Many countries fortify their water with fluoride, if this is the case then perhaps using fluoride-free toothpaste is a good idea – check with your local water company for details. However, fluoride helps to prevent tooth decay so it is important to get some fluoride for healthy teeth but not too much.
Most conventional toothpaste tubes cannot be recycled. However, Colgate has developed a breakthrough recyclable toothpaste tube used in their Smile for Good toothpaste which is a more eco-friendly mainstream toothpaste.
The post Zero Waste Toothpaste: 12 Best Brands for Healthy Teeth in 2022 appeared first on just luve | A modern sustainable lifestyle blog.
