Unless you’ve managed to block out the world of social media from every aspect of your life and refuse to talk about anything other then Australian Ninja Warriors…. you’re bound to have heard of “charcoal toothpaste”. Videos on Instagram and Facebook show celebrities, social media buffs and every-day people using this ‘black’ toothpaste.

So naturally, the question is asked? Does it work? And, are there any downfalls to using it? After all, it does add a new edge to tooth brushing….

Firstly, what is activated charcoal?

“Activated charcoal” is similar to common charcoal, but is made especially for use as a medicine. Activated charcoal is a manufactured product. You cannot find it naturally in foods. To make activated charcoal, manufacturers bake together some charcoal and gas, that causes the charcoal to develop lots of pockets (it’s a little more technical then that, but essentially that is what they do). These pockets help activated charcoal “trap” chemicals.  There has been a lot studies done regarding the use and efficacy of activated charcoal in general medicine, particularly its use in the treatment and management of poisonings.  However, in all these case it was used under the direct management of the treating doctors. Search as we might, we were unable to find any study relating to its use in toothpaste….

So, does Charcoal Toothpaste work?

Well as you can see from our pics, its not too hard to make a toothpaste advert, all you need is a set of perfect white teeth*,  and a media team. In our assessment of these toothpaste (we looked at a few), we found that while the grittiness of the paste may remove surface staining via abrasion, we found it was unable to do much more. What concerns us is that GRITTINESS.  Prolong use of activated charcoal paste and powders may lead to excessive abrasion and loss of enamel (the tough outer layer of your teeth, that we really DO NOT want to abrade away).

What’s our advice?

Well if you really want to give it a go, be sure to tell your dentist, consider a check up first. Then regular check ups to monitor the results, ensuring no side effects are allowed to manifest. This rules goes when trialling any new products whether it be ‘whitening strips’, visiting a ‘smile bars’ at local shopping centre or a new ‘fad’ diet. Speak to your doctors!

Otherwise, a clean with your dentist will ensure all those stains are removed and your teeth are in good shape. If that’s not the sparkle you’re after, then teeth whitening can be recommended. Chair-side teeth whitening (also know as ‘laser’) or take-home customised whitening kits are both options that have been tried and tested for teeth whitening – we know it works!

If you still want more info, shoot us an email or give us a call. That is all.

*That’s our girl Elena in the pictures. And yes, she does have fab white teeth – she got her’s all sparkly using a customised Philips Zoom Teeth Whitening Take Home Kit