If you happen to switched from Crest to a “pure” toothpaste, I want you to go seize the tube proper now.
I’d such as you to flip it over and skim the components.
If you happen to see peppermint oil, tea tree oil, spearmint oil, wintergreen, clove oil, or cinnamon oil — your “pure” toothpaste is disrupting your oral microbiome.
I do know that is arduous to listen to. You made the change since you care about what goes into your physique. You probably did the analysis. You thought you have been doing the correct factor.
However right here’s what no one instructed you: important oils are antimicrobial. That’s the entire level of them — that’s why they’ve been used for a whole bunch of years in wound disinfection and cleansing merchandise. They’re extraordinarily efficient at killing microbes. The issue is, they don’t know the distinction between the micro organism which are defending you and the micro organism which are harming you.
Some important oils are as highly effective as chlorhexidine — the nuclear possibility your dentist prescribes after surgical procedure. And also you’re brushing with them. Twice a day. On daily basis.
So What?
Right here’s the place the widespread phrase “they kill dangerous micro organism however spare good micro organism” breaks down. It’s not simply incorrect — it displays a flawed mind-set in regards to the oral microbiome.
Your mouth comprises over 700 species of micro organism. However they aren’t divided into mounted groups of “good guys” and “dangerous guys.” Most oral microbes are context-dependent — the identical species will be helpful or dangerous relying on the steadiness of the neighborhood round it.
A bacterium that’s completely innocent when your ecosystem is secure can change into disease-associated when that steadiness is disrupted.
Well being isn’t about killing the correct micro organism. It’s about sustaining a secure, useful ecosystem.
Important oils are inherently bactericidal. They work via non-specific mechanisms — disrupting cell membranes, interfering with metabolic processes — which means they apply stress broadly, not selectively.
Whenever you introduce that sort of indiscriminate stress twice a day, you don’t simply take away dangerous exercise. You destabilize all the ecology. You scale back helpful capabilities. You alter microbial communication.
And the organisms that bounce again quickest in a destabilized atmosphere are the opportunistic ones. The disease-associated ones.
Important oils don’t simply take away dangerous exercise — they will destabilize the very ecology that retains your mouth wholesome.
This is the reason a few of you might be doing “every part proper” — brushing, flossing, consuming properly — and nonetheless getting cavities, nonetheless getting bleeding gums. Nonetheless getting instructed you want one other process.
It’s not your fault. It’d simply be your toothpaste.
It’s Not Simply Important Oils
As soon as I began taking a look at toothpaste formulations — actually trying — I discovered drawback after drawback. Even within the “good” manufacturers. Even within the ones I used to be recommending to my very own sufferers.
SLS (Sodium Lauryl Sulfate) — the ingredient that makes your toothpaste foam. That foam feels prefer it’s cleansing your enamel. It’s not. It’s stripping the protecting mucosal lining inside your mouth. I might at all times inform when my sufferers have been utilizing a toothpaste with SLS due to the sloughing of cheek cells I’d see on my intraoral mirror — it’s probably the most recognizable circumstances within the mouth. A number of research have linked SLS to elevated canker sore frequency. The cleansing answer I exploit on our storage ground is 50% SLS. And that is the ingredient most individuals are placing of their mouth twice a day.
Emulsifiers — they hold the components blended collectively on the shelf. Handy for manufacturing. However emulsifiers can disrupt the fragile steadiness of your oral microbiome too.
Endocrine disruptors — components like triclosan and sure preservatives that intervene together with your hormonal system. In your mouth.
Go learn the again of your toothpaste tube — even the one from the well being meals retailer — and ask your self: Do I do know what each certainly one of these components is doing inside my mouth?
My Confession
I’ve been writing about this drawback for nearly a decade. In 2017, I printed an article on my web site known as “Important Oils — The Probably Unhealthy Ingredient in Your ‘Wholesome’ Toothpaste.” I laid out the science. I cited the research.
After which on the backside of that article, I needed to make an admission: I used to be nonetheless utilizing Boka — a toothpaste with important oils in it. As a result of Boka additionally contained nano-hydroxyapatite, and on the time, it was the most effective nano-hydroxyapatite toothpaste available on the market. I really helpful it to my sufferers for years. The nano-hydroxyapatite was too vital to surrender — it was non-negotiable for me.
However the important oils? The SLS? These have been the tradeoff I accepted, as a result of no one had made a nano-hydroxyapatite toothpaste with out them but. I even wrote on the finish of that 2017 article: “I totally understand that there are hardly any important oil-free choices on the market available on the market.”
That tradeoff is strictly why I constructed Fygg.
Fygg is the toothpaste I spent my whole profession wishing existed. No fluoride. No important oils. No SLS. No emulsifiers. No detergents. No endocrine disruptors.
Simply components that remineralize your enamel and nourish your oral microbiome as a substitute of destroying it.
No burn. No foam. The primary time you utilize it, it’ll really feel completely different. That’s since you’ve been educated to assume toothpaste ought to sting. That sting was by no means cleansing your enamel — it was the important oils and SLS attacking your smooth tissue. As soon as that’s gone, you understand: this is how toothpaste ought to really feel.
And the science backs it up. A 2025 research printed within the Journal of Dentistry — performed on the College of Texas Well being San Antonio — examined eight toothpastes head-to-head on their capacity to remineralize early enamel caries lesions.
Fygg achieved roughly double the remineralization of Boka, and the distinction was statistically important (p < .01). Fygg additionally carried out on par with prescription-strength fluoride toothpaste (5,000 ppm). You possibly can learn the complete research right here: PubMed
My entire household makes use of Fygg — my daughters, my grandchildren. It’s the primary toothpaste I’ve ever been in a position to suggest with out an asterisk. No ‘it’s nice, however…’ No tradeoffs.
>> Attempt Fygg (code ATD15 for 15% off)
Have a beautiful week,
Mark
Go Deeper
Important Oils — The Probably Unhealthy Ingredient in Your “Wholesome” Toothpaste — My authentic 2017 article laying out the science on important oils and the oral microbiome.
Why Do I Hold Getting Canker Sores? — The total breakdown on SLS, zinc deficiency, and the foundation causes most dentists miss.
It’s Time for Dentists to Confront the Reality About Fluoride — Why I ended recommending fluoride, and what the federal courtroom ruling means for your loved ones.
Mark’s Should-Haves for Fluoride-Free (and Cavity-Free) Children — My full oral care protocol for youngsters — no fluoride required.
Podcast Episode #110: Redefining Tooth Care with Fluoride-Free Improvements
Podcast Episode #107: Fluoride Varnish + New Alternate options
The remineralization research (Journal of Dentistry, 2025) — The pinnacle-to-head comparability of eight nano-hydroxyapatite and fluoride toothpastes, together with Fygg, Boka, Dr. Jen’s, Risewell, and prescription power fluoride toothpaste.