I don’t like brushing my teeth. I kinda avoid it and skip a brushing here and there. It’s pretty gross that I do that BUT I’ve got all my teeth, they’re pretty white, I’ve just got one or two fillings, and I go to the dentist twice a year with a clean bill of oral health. So whatever it is that I’m doing is working out well enough.
The main reason I don’t like brushing my teeth is the taste of toothpaste. Forget the issue of fluoride consumption; Colgate, Crest, and Aquafresh taste disgusting to me. For a long time in my 20’s I used Tom’s of Maine cinnamon toothpaste and that seemed to work, but not very well on the white coat of smell on my tongue. I would occasionally use the mainstream brands to keep up on the possible “benefits” of fluoride and to fight bad breath. But those toothpastes, Listerine and other mouthwashes didn’t really work well for keeping my mouth smelling fresh all day. I also had (and still have) these little white tonsil stones that come out of the back of my throat. Tonsil stones are dense little nuggets of putrified phlegm and very smelly. In researching a treatment for this inconvenient and gross condition, I found TheraBreath.
Using a toothpaste, mouthwash, and a tongue scraper the TheraBreath product line keeps bacteria down and tonsil stones at bay for 24 hours. And my favorite part is that the toothpaste and mouthwash don’t have much of a taste. This mild product is very appealing to me, but the pricetag is hefty. You’re looking at spending about $20 for the duo per month! $20 a month when compared with $2-3 for toothpaste that will last several months is insanity.
However, I went ahead and bought TheraBreath and it worked very well. My mouth felt clean, fresh and the white coat on my tongue disappeared. The rinse is pleasant and I felt confident round the clock that my mouth didn’t smell bad. The only problem is once I ran out, I didn’t feel compelled to repurchase right away. I have, but only when the drugstore is selling it at a discount or I come across a coupon.
Chemically, this is what I have found. One active ingredient is chlorine dioxide that is produced from the sodium chlorite (labeled OXYD-8) in the product. Whew! Took a while to trace that back!
There are a variety of other mouth products that use this odor reducing chemical, also used as a water cleaner.
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/health/2008-05-13-bad-breath_N.htm
http://halitosiscure-guide.com/therabreath/
However it appears the amount of chlorine dioxide used in the product is very small, and is commonly used as an antibacterial agent for products like this. In the link below, one of the posters notes that you would need to consume 2 bottles of nose drops per day (containing the same active ingredient) and still be confident that you would have no adverse affects. TheraBreath also states that you can swallow their products. That seems pretty safe to me, and I’m digging the idea that you should be able to eat products that you use on your body.
http://ask.metafilter.com/148064/Is-Therabreath-Safe
Skindeep rates TheraBreath a 1 on a scale of 0-10, 0 being the lowest toxicity.
Here’s the last of my current tube of TheraBreath. Goodbye for now!
I’ll be using my Xyliwhite toothpaste and will review that down the road.
Detox Witch 