How to choose a toothpaste without problematic chemicals

Triclosan and other suspected endocrine disruptors are present in some toothpastes

Have you thought about the chemicals in the toothpaste, that you use every morning and evening? The Danish Consumer Council THINK Chemicals recommends that you do if you want to avoid problematic ingredients during the brushing.

The Danish Consumer Council THINK Chemicals has checked the ingredient lists on 32 toothpastes, looking for substances that are suspected to be endocrine disrupting and also fragrances which are classified as detrimental to the environment. 14 toothpastes receive the best mark, whereas 5 get the lowest.

Test: 14 toothpastes are without problematic substances, Forbrugerrådet Tænk Kemi, 4. maj 2016.

Besides triclosan some toothpastes in the test contain parabens, which are suspected to be endocrine disrupting substances. One contained the substance manganese sulfate which is classified as damaging to the organs of the body by the EU.

There are plenty of good toothpaste on the market for the consumers. However, there are still substances that we recommend consumers to avoid in order to reduce their exposure. For example, Colgate Total contains the endocrine disrupting substance triclosan. Even though there is no immediate health risk in using the product, triclosan is one of the unnecessary endocrine disrupting substances, that we recommend consumers to reduce or avoid altogether.”

says Stine Müller, project manager at The Danish Consumer Council THINK Chemicals.

The common fragrance limonene gets a yellow mark in the test, since the substance is classified as detrimental to the environment.

Have your say! Share your views