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White teeth are not safe in a city like Portland. There are too many good things to drink and smoke.
I am consistently testing the strength of my enamel with adolescent levels of high fructose corn syrup, a lot of cannabis, coffee, and (gasp) even tobacco. As my daily vices became more regular over the past few years, my pearly whites have grown dingy. But I am terrified of chemical whitening processes, and am not sure I care enough about white teeth to go through the physical pain of Crest whitestrips.
I do care enough to have looked into a few alternative, more homeopathic remedies. Tried the whole coconut oil pulling thing, when you swish around a tablespoon of unrefined coconut oil for several minutes, eyes watering from trying not to gag on the weird consistency. Too awkward a process to make a habit every morning.
Then I read about activated charcoal trend and was intrigued enough to make a total mess of my bathroom sink. I bought tablets of the black powder from a health food store and dipped my toothbrush a pile of the stuff. I was to brush normally and just be sure to rinse well. My teeth felt clean, cleaner than usual, but it was a pain to crack open a capsule and clean up the mess twice a day. Fortunately for my teeth, Schmidt's Naturals has simplified my life once again with their Wondermint + Activated Charcoal Toothpaste.
The Portland-based company is known for their cult favorite deodorants (which I also reviewed here), have since released soap bars, and most recently launched a line of natural toothpastes. Similar to the range of botanical, not powdery, deodorant scents, the toothpaste comes in unique flavors like Vanilla Chai, Jasmine + Spearmint, and Wondermint + Charcoal.
The Wondermint + Charcoal version isn't totally black, but spitting mouthfuls of grey-colored toothpaste does take a little getting used to. Flavor wise, you won't get the same minty blast as typical toothpastes. It's a subtle, slightly mint paste flavor. But the slight exfoliation happening with the charcoal is much gentler than some of the major brands' whitening formulas, which can feel like pure Boroxo powdered hand soap. Despite my mouth turning concrete-colored while brushing, my teeth are cleaner than they typically feel, more plaque-free than usual after one brushing session without flossing.
As far as whitening power, I've seen a slight brightening effect when I'm good about brushing my teeth after drinking coffee or red wine. After a few weeks of using it, overall my teeth certainly don't look worse, and they definitely feel cleaner at the end of the day. I like getting that gentle exfoliation to at least maintain whatever pearliness my teeth retain, and this is a pain-free, $10 way to try and lighten things up without going to a professional or melting your enamel with chemical whitestrips.
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