homemade toothpaste recipe

Last year when my husband came back from Italy, he heard statements like this:

“Oh we don’t use shampoo anymore.”

“The body lotion is in that canning jar now.”

And the most alarming proclamation: “I made homemade toothpaste!”

He was, and still is, a trooper. The first homemade toothpaste recipe that we tried was from Amy’s (excellent) emailorder #11. It was exciting and liberating and we liked it, though we ultimately decided that it was a bit soapy tasting and the essential oils were too strong for our son. That said, we still use it for traveling as it keeps well in a tincture bottle. Over the winter I ran across Rachel’s recipe by way of Progressive Pioneer; I adapted the recipe ever so slightly, and that’s what we’ve used ever since. My son adores it and will not use any other kind.

Homemade Toothpaste Recipe

2 tsp. Dr. Bronner’s Baby Mild liquid castille soap

4 T. coconut oil

1 T. boiled water

2 T. xylitol

15 drops peppermint essential oil

7 drops sweet orange essential oil

For a how-to and Rachel’s original recipe, visit this post.

Will you try making your own toothpaste? What is your favorite natural toothpaste brand?

Disclaimer: I drink quite a lot of coffee and tea, which stains my teeth. When I notice the stains, I switch to a natural whitening toothpaste for a few days, and then switch back. The reason I do this is because it contains glycerin, which I do not want on my teeth often, but I really like that particular brand of toothpaste. Sadly natural toothpaste still contains nasty ingredients, and holy crap it is so wicked expensive. I make my own because it is outrageously cheap, truly non-toxic and reduces packaging waste.