Wiggle with me towards these Kids natural toothpaste ideas

After a particularly pleasant visit to the dentist the nurse handed my kids  tube of toothpaste...and a balloon. At the time I was thrilled...almost as much as the kids..afterall we had just paid alot of money for check-ups and it is always nice to get something for free...not quite a toothbrush..but paste is great!

After coming home, my kids wanted to hit the taps straight away and brush with their new gift. I squeezed the paste onto their brushes but checked the back first...and in tiny letters there was a warning that I had never really noticed before...something like..."only use a tiny pea sized amount AND be sure that it is not swallowed"...How ridiculous i thought...not swallowing toothpaste...it was enough to stop me in my track...I washed off their brushes and put the tube up in the cupboard...I was going to do a little more research into just why this extremely serious warning was on a packet of WIGGLES toothpaste obviously marketed at kids.

After doing a bit of reading I discovered that there are heaps of chemicals in alot of our supermarket bought toothpastes...some of which CAN trigger allergic reactions, behavioural issues, skin irritations, and can damage tooth enamel...to name just a few of the bad reactions (please google this topic for more info)

But the scariest thing I think, is that ingesting too much fluoride is dangerous...and children tend to swallow a large percentage of the toothpaste placed on their toothbrush so this is a danger serious enough for them to have these warnings.

Now I don't want to be a panic merchant or be perceived as a militant anti fluoride hippy... I understand we all make decisions... the best decisions we can for our selves and our kids...I have chosen one option...and those who are using the fluoride toothpastes with supervision..another...but we need to be aware that there are warnings on the packs for a reason and kids younger than 6 need to be supervised so they dont swallow the whole tube and end up in hospital. Reputable sources say that fluoride is important in fighting tooth decay..these organizations state that the absence or too small amount of fluoride may leave a child unprotected against the development of tooth decay. When fluoride use is monitored and given at the proper dose, it has been shown to help maintain good oral health. This is especially important since dental decay is one of the most common childhood diseases. For me and my children...well we live in melbourne and there is fluoride in the water...so I felt that surely there were more natural, healthy options that I could purchase locally when it came to toothpaste (whether from the supermarket OR the health food store)

I did ask on my tumblemonkey page if anyone had been using natural solutions like bicarb and lemon juice. I knew however, my kids wouldnt use this option regularly ...without alot of hard work my end...so I needed some other solutions.

We did try a few options like miessence lemon ...but even my husband and I couldnt come at this one...alot of people love it...but to me it wasnt going to be a long term solution either. We also bought SNAPPY JAWS and although this was OK...it soon got left behind. Then I found it...well I refound it actually....JACK & JILL.

Apparently Jack and Jill have been around since I was a child...my mum remembers buying it for me. So I jumped online and ordered 4 different flavours including bubblegum, strawberry, banana and rasberry flavoured. Only paid about $6 for postage and it arrived in a few days and we were all very excited. The kids love it...I have since seen it in the local health food store...so online is not the only place you can find it.

Another issue that was raised was about the safety of Xylitol (which is in Jack & Jill). I had a wonderful post from an australian pharmacist who said Xylitol is a safe and natural sweetener and does have scientifically proven defense against cavities.

I did give Jack & Jill a red hot go but for me it was a bit like brushing with lollies...so I ended up buying some GRANTS...which is easily available at the supermarket for only a few dollars (and has also been around for ages) It is more like the traditional mint toothpaste...which for my husband and I is much more do-able. 

As a little aside..apparently you can brush with soapnut liquid (which I tried but couldnt come at) OR Dr Bronner's soaps (google this product too..and I will talk about this more in upcoming posts..to me it was too much like using soap!!!)So that is where we are at with natural toothpaste options. Hopefully this might help you with your research on common sense, more natural choices for your kids toothpastes (and your own).