If you’ve ever stood in the beauty, toothpaste, shampoo, etc. isle and asked your self: “Why can’t just one of these products do all of this?”, then you aren’t alone. It’s not hard to put all of the good you want into one product, but I suppose they do it this way so you’ll buy a ton of products instead of just one that works. What a bunch of butt heads. Well forget the big box brands that offer shades whiter, improved gum health, and enamel strengthening all separate. Here’s how you can get all of the above and more for a fraction of the cost.
I have crazy sensitive teeth and have NEVER been able to use strips, gels or anything else like that. This is the only effective whitening method I have ever used that didn’t cause me globs of sensitivity problems, and I hope you like it too.
Before you roll your eyes at the ingredients list because it’s the same old same old that your grandma has been spouting for years, don’t forget she’s doing that because these things work. They’re tried and true for generations. And why fix what ain’t broken? And if you need proof that these are still the most relevant whitening ingredients, go back to the toothpaste isle and start reading each one for the magic ingredient their touting on the front of each box. Peroxide is even the main ingredient in the whitening strips or UV whitening session you’ve been considering. You’ll be shocked how much you’ve been paying for baking soda and peroxide with a minty flavor, y’all.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 Cup Baking Soda
- 2 Tablespoons of Hydrogen Peroxide
- 2 Tablespoons of Listerine with Fluoride
- 2 Tablespoons of Household Toothpaste – I like to use up the remnants in older tubes that my husband is too stubborn to squeeze out. Any works (their job is as a binder), but he likes Colgate Optic White Toothpaste
What makes this toothpaste so amazing is that the baking soda provides unparalleled abrasive scrub-ability (just like the paste the dentist has). Your teeth will feel back from the dentist clean and smooth all day. The peroxide goes after stains like a champ. The combo of the abrasiveness and the peroxide kick the you know what out of the wine stains I’m constantly brewing with my red wine habit. If you struggle with remembering to floss and/or have less healthy gums, this can help you out too. Don’t panic if this causes your gums to bleed slightly the first one or two uses – it’s actually a VERY good thing to power through until this stops in a few days to a few weeks which means your gum health is improving. With a little time, you will notice a healthy change in your gums; just try not to forget flossing because no brush gets between your teeth. The Listerine adds fluoride which is imperative to preventing cavities, sensitivity, and enamel weakening – DON’T SKIP IT!
Directions:
Get yourself a tupperware container that is at least double the volume of the ingredients. I’ll explain why in a bit. Pour in the baking soda.
Add in your ingredients one by one. Order doesn’t really matter.
Toothpaste.
Mmmmm. Looks lovely.
Peroxide.
Listerine. With the Listerine, the key ingredient is the sodium fluoride (circled below as to where you can find it on the label) this is the part that strengthens up your teeth and replaces some of what is lost by daily use, food, etc. I also recommend full flavor versions because they hide the flavors of baking soda and peroxide best.
Don’t be shocked that it’s starting to bubble. It will do this and expand some for about 24 hours.
Now Stir it all together until you have a good one consistency mixture.
You want the final consistency to be a similar thickness to a thin pancake batter. If it’s too dry, add either more peroxide or more Listerine little by little. Choose Listerine if you’re a flavor person, choose peroxide if you can get past the flavor and want more powerful whitening.
Set the cap on top of the tupperware, DON’T SNAP IT DOWN! For the first ~24 hours, I like to set mine in the sink to be safe in case it accidentally flows over.
During this 24 hours, it will double in size and the consistency will be similar to a toothpaste, but with a frothy layer on top.
Stir the bubbles into the rest of the paste and you’re ready to use it! I have a conventional toothbrush with soft bristles. I have never tried this with an electric toothbrush, but I wouldn’t recommend it because it might hurt it. I definitely don’t recommend using any brush besides soft either – but with the natural abrasiveness of this paste, you won’t need or want anything harder anyhow.
Over the life of your toothpaste batch, it may and likely will dry out some. Just use a splash of either peroxide or Listerine to loosen it up some.
I’m no dentist, but mine was impressed with how bright, unstained and healthy my teeth were considering red wine is my favorite food group. So instead of plastering your teeth with the latest creepy charcoal, turmeric or whatever nasty fad, why not just go back to the basics? There’s nothing better that been tested, tried, and true for generations.