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Recently, I stumbled across an article that talked about toothpaste ingredients and the issues they can actually cause rather than prevent— and it startled me. I know there are TONS of natural toothpaste companies out there nowadays… yet they’re a bit pricey. If I can make something simple + effective at home for a fraction of the price, why not? Here’s my very own homemade toothpaste recipe… full of only the good stuff.
I can honestly say this is the best natural toothpaste I’ve tried, and that’s saying something since I’ve been on the hunt for a great option for a while!
Note: There is no fluoride in this recipe. Depending on your stance with this, feel free to add in a fluoride product or use a fluoride mouthwash afterwards.
Common toothpaste ingredients
Two ingredients that have a pretty bad wrap are:
1. Glycerin: It gives toothpaste a nice creamy texture and coats the teeth for “protection”, yet at the same time it also stops re-enamalization (so cavities can’t self-heal.)
2. Sodium fluoride: A by-product of aluminum manufacturing that is found in rat poisons and industrial pesticides).
Scary stuff, huh? Well, rather than freak out about it every time I brush my teeth, I decided to make some homemade toothpaste sans weird stuff. And yes— I threw in some wonderful coconut oil that I’m beyond obsessed with and it’s millions of effective uses.
Natural toothpaste recipe
Once I started experimenting with a homemade toothpaste recipe, I was pleasantly surprised to find out how few ingredients I actually needed. My recipe has 4 ingredients, with an optional 5th if you add in activated charcoal. Not only is this recipe simple, it contains only plant based ingredients that are common. No weird chemical compounds or additives here!
When whipping up a batch of this homemade toothpaste, I typically triple the batch. That way each bathroom has its own container, so there’s no family fights over the jar. To keep the ingredients light and airy, I use an immersion blender rather than mixing with a blender or food processor.
Antibacterial essential oils
If you choose the right essential oils, then you can create a strong antibacterial toothpaste. I suggest these essential oils, which I typically purchase from Plant Therapy:
- Grapefruit Oil
- Peppermint Oil
- Tea Tree Oil
- Orange Oil
- Lemongrass Oil
I am thrilled to have found a homemade toothpaste replacement that I actually enjoy using as well as have fun making. I like that I can tweak the recipe depending on my personal preference at the time (sweeter, minty, fruity, etc— it’s all about what essential oils I put in it). This summer I made a batch with grapefruit oil and it has a citrus-tang to it, which was refreshing. Now I am using eucalyptus oil and I love the minty taste.
How to store DIY toothpaste
I like to store homemade toothpaste in a wide-mouth mason jar or leak-proof metal tin. Use a popsicle stick to dip into the toothpaste and and then spread your toothbrush. You can also use a squirt bottle and cut a wide tip on it to help it come out.
Homemade Dog Toothpaste
YES… I made this recipe for me and my family… yet it also works with dogs! Since my sweet dog (Barrett the Huskador), cannot resist licking and swallowing everything in his face, I made this for him too. Since they are completely natural ingredients, there’s no harm if he licks it while I brush.
Other DIY recipes
If this natural recipe has piqued your interest in more natural products you can use in your home, then I’ve got some more great recipes for you. These recipes are plant based versions that seriously work, just like this homemade toothpaste recipe:
- Homemade chest rub
- Fire cider
- Ginger lemon honey tea
- Homemade deodorant
- Elderberry syrup
- Anti-inflammatory smoothie cubes
- Bloat-fighting smoothie
- DIY lip scrub
Homemade Toothpaste Recipe
Jen HansardIngredients
- 6 tablespoon coconut oil, unrefined
- 6 tablespoon baking soda
- 25 drop essential oil eucalyptus, grapefruit, peppermint
- 1 teaspoon stevia or more if you like it sweeter
- activated charcoal optional
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. I used my to whip it really well and give it a light creamy texture.
- Pour into a mason jar and seal it up until ready to use.
Recipe Notes
- Getting it out of the mason jar can be an adjustment. Use a popsicle stick to dip into the toothpaste and spread nicely onto the toothbrush. You can also use a squirt bottle (you will need to cut the pointed tip wider).
- Adding activated charcoal can be a gentle way to whiten your teeth.
Thanks Sophia. I appreciate the support and can’t wait to spend some time on the Facebook page as well as the links they share. Wow— lots of great stuff. I’m thrilled to have you on here and hope you stick around for our next 30 Day Green Smoothie Challenge that starts April 1. Think you will enjoy it. Thanks again…
Just a testimonial….
I have 4 kids ages 19-10. We eat a healthy diet with very little sugar, no soft drinks….. They have never used flouride toothpaste and all floss regularly. They rarely go to the dentist for a cleaning (about once every 3 years), and 2 of them have had braces. In almost 20 years of parenting, our kids (and my husband and I) have had only 1 cavity between the 6 of us.
If a child eats a sugary foods, goes to sleep with a bottle in his mouth, doesn’t brush or floss regularly… it stands to reason that he will have cavities. The success is in the healthy diet and good home care, NOT in the flouride. I personally know numerous children who brush daily with flouride and still have a mouthful of cavities.
Thank you so much for your testimonial, Lisa! 🙂
Thank you for sharing your experience Lisa. Have you used any toothpaste at all or are you dry brushing?
I just wanted to say hoo-rah to “Dentist”. I used to work in the medical field and still know many people that do, and it’s extremely maddening when patients (or parents of patients in my experience) ignore advice that has been given thanks to REAL research by professionals, and then end up in the ER or worse because of their poor choices.
My husband and I took custody of his 4 children in September of last year – at the time, they each had a minimum of 6 cavities, and the 9 yr old & 11 yr old had to have root canals, and his 8 year old daughter had an abscessed tooth. (they also all had Pertussis, but that’s for a different discussion). They had been using homemade baking soda toothpaste for 2 years. After being with us for 6 months and using REAL toothpaste, they are all cavity free. That speaks volumes to me right there.
Baking soda & oil? Doesn’t sound like it would clean ANYTHING to me. The only thing I use Coconut oil for is moisturizing of hair and dry skin. I know it supposedly has great “healing properties”, etc, but I would NOT trust it to clean teeth.
Well said, “Dentist”. Well said. And thank you for all you do for all those people that are in such pain and distress, especially the children you treat. You are an angel.
I’m happy that my toothpaste recipe has stirred such a discussion! Thanks BarbsieJean for sharing your story. This is a choice that every has the right to make— and I’m glad we are all educating ourselves about it. I shared my personal recipe with you because it works and my family has great teeth (no cavities, root canals etc). It could be because we brush our teeth twice a day and it might also correlate with the fact that we consume real foods and drink green smoothies daily. There are many factors that play into healthy gums and teeth— more than just the toothpaste you use.
Yes, big name toothpaste works and fluoride is proven to prevent cavities— but at what expense? It’s something for you to personally think about and decide once you have all the information. Thanks for being open and sharing your story here.
I spend my weekends in the ER taking a bur and scalpel to drain pus from people’s jaws and extract what’s left of hopeless teeth consumed by cavity, and my week days in the operating room with 3 and 4yo children who’s teeth are rotting out of their heads.
When we try to formulate a treatment plan to combat their rampant dental disease and they tell me that they stopped or won’t use fluoride (one of the only and certainly the best tool we have to help them) because they heard it was bad for them, I’m holding sites like this responsible.
Did you even realize that your invented mixture is terrible for people with white/porcelain crowns/caps? Grocery store baking soda is abrasive enough to take the glaze off of the porcelain. That glaze is like teflon to bacteria, keeping it from sticking. Once that glaze is gone, its gone- and the tooth is that much more susceptible to a new cavity. So, like YOU said, people should be educated about the ingredients in the products they use (and recommend).
There are certainly alternatives, ^the woman who was using the natural toothpaste was one of them. Baking soda does have its benefits for SOME people, depending on the type of dental disease they have. The point is that this conversation and this area of healthcare should be a discussion with your dentist- not ‘Dr. Oz’ and not a smoothie/health-food expert. If you have strong objections after hearing the medical recommendations, then they will work with you, but you deserve to know. Protect yourself people, there’s a lot of hocus-pocus out there, and they’re only “just teeth” until they’re gone!
We can’t do our jobs unless people take care of themselves correctly. Promoting that traditional toothpaste are “scary,” contain “rat poison” derivatives and people have reason to “freak out” every time they brush because you did “research,” and should instead use some unproven concoction, is ignorant and irresponsible. You talk about healthcare like it is religion, where you can simply choose what works for you and that will heal you. You can’t simply believe that herbs and oils can cure cancer and have it be so.
So, to answer you, there ARE two sides to every story, and I find it offensive that you post websites promoting un-educated and skewed information about some of the best tools we have to help people. You are discrediting TRULY educated and proven healthcare.
This is wasted breath on someone who would rather believe that something whipped-up out of their pantry is better than years of science and research. I just hope that someone considering changing part of their healthcare will take the following into consideration-
Especially if you have or have had several cavities, or a history of erosion on your teeth, please please please talk to a professional before chaining your routine. Preventative medicine does nothing to benefit anyone but the patient, and that is truly our first priority!
Id just like to take a second to point out that there is nothing wrong with taking the holistic approach to health care. Yes there are herbs that cure cancer; Hemp oil being the most dominant, and yes i do believe that something whipped up from your pantry using a recipe passed down for generations, works better then a man made chemical that does more damage to the rest of your body, then it helps your teeth. These people may not be doctors or dentists. But a tleast they are on the right track to healthy living, and holistic healing, which in my opinion, is a hell of a lot better for you then anything i can find in the ER