There is no doubt that proper care is essential when you are dealing with periodontal gum disease. Maintaining an excellent preventative dental routine and seeking treatment when it is necessary are key elements when you are fighting gum disease. However if you were to study the ingredient list on the typical tube of toothpaste, you may rethink conventional wisdom. A lot of those ingredients sound more like components of a chemical weapon than something that should be put in your mouth. And what’s with the warnings about not ingesting the stuff. Maybe it’s old fashioned but if you can’t swallow it why would you want to put it in your mouth in the first place?

When you have time, run down the list of ingredients on your tube of toothpaste and research what each one is. What you find out will surprise and disturb you. Of course the teeth and gums need to be kept clean to avoid periodontal gum disease and other oral problems, but the better way to go is one that doesn’t include an ingredient list like this.

• Sodium fluoride
• Sorbitol
• Glycerin

Sodium fluoride is a term you hear just about every day, but there are some things you should know about this ingredient. Yes, it is true that sodium fluoride is used to strengthen the enamel of the teeth to prevent decay. On the other hand, this stuff is also used in insecticides. Most of us don’t run around eating bug spray, why would we brush our teeth with it? Periodontal gum disease can be controlled with healthier ingredients than that.

If that wasn’t enough fun for you, take a look at sorbitol. Overall there could be worse chemicals in toothpaste. Sorbitol is an artificial sweetener. The average person is exposed to enough unnatural ingredients in fast food; there is no need to use it in toothpaste as well. Especially not when the use of essential oils like peppermint and spearmint would produce a pleasant tasting product as well.

Glycerin is used for a couple of different reasons in toothpaste. It keeps the product from drying out and is helpful maintaining the consistency of the toothpaste. That doesn’t sound so bad. At least not until you look at its other uses. Glycerin is also an ingredient in lubricants, inks, and here’s the real kicker, dynamite. Of course periodontal gum disease doesn’t stand a chance against glycerin; it just blows the bacteria up.