How to Choose the Right Toothpaste for Your Needs

Choosing a toothpaste can be overwhelming. There are so many options. How do you decide which kind of toothpaste you need? Selecting the right toothpaste for your needs is important. Do you need one that controls tartar? Or one that contains fluoride? Or do you gravitate toward a toothpaste that has a whitening formula?

At Sninski & Schmitt Family Dentistry, we can help you decide the kind of toothpaste that is right for your needs. This article explores different types of toothpaste and how each can help specific dental needs.

Toothpaste “101” – The Basics

Toothpaste comes in paste or gel. Even though there are many types of toothpaste, there are some ingredients that are common to most, including:

• Abrasive agents: Rough materials, including calcium carbonate and silicates, help remove food, bacteria, and some stains on your teeth.
• Flavoring: Toothpaste comes in a variety of flavors to give you a fresh mouth and a pleasurable experience. Artificial sweeteners such as saccharin are often added to make toothpaste taste better.
• Humectants: Humectants like glycerol are often added to toothpaste and gels to keep them from drying out.
• Thickeners: Agents that add thickness to the paste of gel help maintain the proper toothpaste texture.
• Detergents: Detergents like sodium lauryl sulfate create the suds when you brush your teeth.

A toothpaste or gel that contains fluoride is one of the most important tools in your oral hygiene routine. We can’t emphasize enough the importance of oral hygiene for overall health regardless of the toothpaste you use.

For Protection from Cavities

If your teeth are prone to cavities, you will want to choose a toothpaste that protects them. Here are some factors that may increase the risk of cavities:

• Tooth location – When your teeth are crowded, it may be difficult to keep them clean, therefore,  cavities can begin. Back teeth have more grooves, pits, and divots that can trap food particles, making them harder to keep clean than front teeth.
• Diet – Sugary foods and drinks, acidic foods, and foods that stick to your teeth for a long time can increase the risk of cavities.
• Oral hygiene – Plaque, a sticky film of bacteria, can build up on your teeth and harden into tartar if not removed regularly. Plaque and tartar can eat away at tooth enamel, creating holes that allow bacteria to reach the dentin and pulp.
• Dry mouth – Saliva protects teeth and oral tissues, so when you have decreased saliva production it can increase the risk of cavities. 

The most important ingredient to look for when selecting toothpaste in general is fluoride. For the best cavity protection, look for a toothpaste that has at least 1,000 parts per million fluoride with the American Dental Association stamp of approval. 

First, fluoride toothpaste makes your enamel stronger and less likely to be damaged by the acid. And, second, fluoride can reverse the early stages of acid damage by remineralizing places that have started to decay.

For Controlling Tartar

Tartar, also known as dental calculus, is hardened plaque that forms when plaque bacteria isn’t removed through proper oral hygiene. Plaque is made up of food particles and bacteria. It forms in your mouth when you eat, drink, and sleep. If plaque isn’t removed regularly, it can turn into tartar within 24 to 72 hours. 

In most situations, tartar forms on teeth due to failure to remove plaque bacteria through good oral hygiene practices, but other factors may also come into play. Some factors that can contribute to tartar buildup include:

• Diet
• Tobacco Use
• Tooth structure

Tartar control toothpaste contains ingredients that help prevent plaque from hardening into tartar, such as:

• Anti-calculus agents – These agents delay plaque calcification and include zinc ions and pyrophosphate.
• Abrasives – These agents help remove plaque by scraping away bacteria and polishing teeth without damaging enamel.
• Fluoride – Fluoride strengthens enamel and protects teeth from cavities.
• Sodium hexametaphosphate – This is a polyphosphate that is very effective at preventing tartar and stains.
• Triclosan – This is an antibiotic that kills some of the bacteria in the mouth that cause plaque and tartar.

Toothpaste that contains multiple anti-plaque agents is more effective at tartar control than those with only one. Toothpaste can’t remove tartar that has already hardened onto your teeth. In a regular dental checkup, a dental professional can clean tartar and plaque with proper tools.

For Sensitive Teeth

Teeth can become sensitive when tooth enamel is worn down or when tooth roots have become exposed from receding gums. Other factors can cause sensitivity such as when you have a cavity, a cracked or chipped tooth, a worn filling, or gum disease.

Toothpaste for sensitive teeth contains active ingredients that work to calm the nerves in your teeth, making them less sensitive to triggers like heat, cold, and sugar. These ingredients can include:

• Potassium nitrate – A salt compound that blocks pain signals from your dental nerve to your brain.
• Stannous fluoride – Builds a protective layer over exposed dentin to block triggers from reaching the nerves.
• Strontium chloride – This ingredient can block the tubules and dentin to prevent anything from irritating the nerves.
• Novamin – A calcium formulation that builds a repairing layer over vulnerable areas of your teeth.
• Allantoin – This ingredient is found in many plants. It is known for its soothing and protective effects.

For Whitening

Who among us doesn’t want their teeth to be whiter? Teeth can become dingy as we age, so brightening our teeth can make us look younger. Other factors that can cause teeth to look stained or yellow include:

• Smoking
• Tetracycline antibiotic
• Genetics
• Calcium deficiency
• Trauma to teeth
• Coffee and tea

A whitening toothpaste has ingredients that may lighten the color of your teeth. Typically, a whitening toothpaste contains fluoride as well as additional ingredients that help whiten teeth:

• Abrasives – Abrasive ingredients such as baking soda, silica, dicalcium phosphate, magnesium carbonate, hydrated aluminum oxides, and calcium carbonate can polish teeth and remove surface stains.
• Bleaching agents – Ingredients such as hydrogen peroxide and carbamide peroxide can lighten tooth color.

Contact Sninski & Schmitt Family Dentistry to Schedule a Dental Cleaning and Checkup

Maintaining your dental cleanings and checkups is crucial as part of an effective oral hygiene routine. Our professional dental team will ensure your teeth are clear of tartar and in good shape. We can help you decide the right type of toothpaste for your needs. 

Please use the convenient online form below to schedule an appointment or call our Holly Springs office at 919-600-6262 or Cary location at 919-467-2203. We look forward to hearing from you.