Homemade Toothpaste With Activated Charcoal

It took me some time to actually make homemade toothpaste although I had been planning it for a long time. When I finally did I was sorry I didn’t do it sooner. So keep reading and make your own toothpaste, you’ll be amazed!

We watch what we put on our skin, what we wash and cook with but we seem to not have enough interest in what we brush our teeth with although our teeth will never grow back if we don’t take care of them properly. For example, have ever given it a thought that maybe we don’t really need our toothpaste to be sweet? And why are they sweet? I’ll tell you one thing – we don’t need it to be sweet and you’ll be surprised how little (or not at all) you’ll miss that particular characteristic of your old toothpaste.

Did you know that using charcoal for oral hygiene isn’t anything new? Our great-grandmothers were pretty familiar with it and this is yet another piece of “ancient” wisdom we’re rediscovering.

I have plenty of homemade cosmetics recipes and tutorials so check them out here, I'm especially proud of my Natural Soda-free Deodorant!

EDIT: Please check out the comments, some people of this great community came up with GREAT points. For example, this toothpaste shouldn't be used with and electric toothbrush and also it could interfere with some kinds of medication so check ny meds you might be taking.

Supplies

- 50 g of non-refined cold-pressed coconut oil

- 20 g of calcium carbonate powder (also knows as chalk or marbe)

- 10 g of activated charcoal powder (also known as activated carbon)

- 5 drops of tea tree essential oil

- 10 drops of mint or mint eucalyptus essential oil

- jar (I use a wide and short glass jar with a lid)

Step 1: Understanding Your Ingredients

It is good to know why we use the things we use:

The coconut oil is a very pleasant base for the toothpaste. It feels nice in the mouth and it smells nice. If you don’t like to smell of coconut, use another oil that solidifies at room temperature, just make sure it’s not refined because we want only high-quality ingredients. If I hadn’t used the coconut oil my next choice would bee shea butter nilotica. The calcium carbonate powder is the abrasion component that helps remove dirt from your teeth and also makes the paste more dense which really helps when you use the coconut oil. The activated charcoal has a whitening effect and the tea tree essential oil is known for its anti-inflammatory effect. The mint essential oil will give the toothpaste the typical fresh taste and you a fresh breath. I use a little more to cover the tea tree smell which I’m not a fan of. If you don’t mind the tea tree, you can use just 5 drops of the mint essential oil.

Step 2: My Impression When I Changed From a Store-bought Toothpaste

I was more than pleasantly surprised. I didn’t miss the sweet taste of the paste at all. You might be doubtful of the taste of the charcoal but let me tell you that there’s actually so little of it in this recipe that you will taste the oil much more than the charcoal (and its taste isn’t unpleasant either). The overall taste of the homemade toothpaste is rather neutral. After I brush my teeth I have the feeling of a clean mouth and my breath is fresh long after I’ve brushed. I was afraid a little of the black color and how to remove it from my teeth. However, there’s not so much charcoal in the paste and the base of the paste is greasy which helps just wash the color off with water.

Step 3: Mixing the Toothpaste

If your oil is too solid, let it sit at room temperature before mixing.

Add the powders first mixing them well into the oil.

When you add the charcoal you know you've mixed well when you have a homogenous black paste.

Add the essential oils last and once again, mix well.

Step 4: Use and Storage

Use like any other toothpaste. You'll probably have to get used to being a bit more carefull when rinsing your toothbrush because when the black paste splashes, you WILL see the black smudges. Clean them immediatelly.

You can have the toothpaste in your bathroom. I don’t recommend to keep it in the fridge because the paste would become really hard. On the other hand, it should not be in a room that’s too warm or it will be very liquid. If you keep it in the fridge, take it our an hour or so before using it.