Brushing your teeth with charcoal is supposed to remove stains like coffee and tobacco from your enamel. Does it really work or is charcoal toothpaste just an urban myth?
Brushing your teeth with charcoal and charcoal infused toothpastes is more than just a modern trend. When you are living off the land, a charcoal toothpaste is cheap and effective. Does it work to remove stains from your teeth? Studies suggest that it just might.
Brushing Your Teeth is a Good Health Essential
One thing everyone agrees on is that we must brush our teeth. Regardless of whether we become lost at sea or comfortable at home, brushing our teeth is an essential part of daily hygiene. When we don’t brush, we get infections, rotten teeth, and plaque buildup. A healthy mouth is part of a healthy lifestyle.
Why Brush with Charcoal?
Charcoal is the wilderness survivalist’s alternative toothpaste. There is a specific type of charcoal that you use for this. It is not the charcoal in your barbecue. It is charcoal that has gone through the activation process. This material is simple to make and costs little. You can learn how to make activated charcoal for yourself and never need to buy toothpaste again.
What does Brushing with Charcoal do?
Toothpaste performs multiple functions. It contains fluoride to clean everything properly, it might make your breath smell better or rebuild weak enamel. It might make your smile whiter or prevent gum disease. Charcoal is slightly abrasive and will remove marks from your teeth. It will polish them, but it doesn’t contain all the bacteria fighting goodness that major toothpaste brands may have.
Does Brushing with Activated Charcoal Work?
So yes – brushing your teeth with activated charcoal works to remove stains and plaque. Your teeth might well be whiter. However, they do not have the protection that a real toothpaste can give. Brushing with activated charcoal is a workable solution short term. The brushing motion will help remove biofilm, too.
How do you use Activated Charcoal to Brush with?
If you want to use activated charcoal, there are three ways you can do this. The first is to buy a charcoal infused toothbrush. These are brushes whose bristles are usually black because they have a charcoal coating on them. This adds to the abrasion the brush has against your teeth and gums.
The second way to brush using activated charcoal, is to buy an infused toothpaste. You may combine both the brush and toothpaste for maximum charcoal efficiency. The toothpaste works well because it retains the other qualities that toothpaste gives you. It has breath freshening, anti-bacterial, plaque-fighting abilities as well as the activated charcoal’s whitening ability.
The third way to brush your teeth using activated charcoal is to simply dip your brush into the powdered form. You should wet your toothbrush, dip it into the powder up to the end of the bristles, and then apply it straight to the teeth and gums. Do this 4-5 times a week for a whiter smile.