No toothpaste

[ChrisJHC]

Having read all the comments in this thread, I'll still be taking toothpaste with me on my hikes!


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[matagi]

Have you considered asking a dentist?

[Luke001]

Effect of Fluoride on prevention of decay in Adults:
https://www.researchgate.net/publicatio ... _in_Adults

[Orion]

Have you considered asking a dentist?

Which dentist? The vast majority would tell you to use a fluoride toothpaste. A minority would tell you the fluoride concentration is too low to do any good.

Effect of Fluoride on prevention of decay in Adults:
https://www.researchgate.net/publicatio ... _in_Adults

It kinda looks like it works but the evidence isn't all that strong. In that review, there was only one study about (self-applied) over the counter fluoride toothpaste. All the other studies had to do with either professionally applied fluoride treatments or fluoridated water. While that single 1988 study showed a positive effect it's not enough by itself. Toothpaste research must not be very sexy.

So the question remains -- if you stop using fluoride paste what happens? You can be your own guinea pig in life.

[Son of a Beach]

I've been that guinea pig.

I stopped using toothpaste for about 10 years after my old dentist told me that toothpaste isn't really necessary, so long as you keep brushing regularly. So I kept brushing, but with just a wet toothbrush - no toothpaste. There were no detrimental effects that I was aware of and that was the only 10 years of my life that I've not had any tooth cavities. It's just one anecdote, so make of it what you will.

I started using toothpaste again around the time I met my wife. I guess I was worried I might have bad breath.

I have never taken toothpaste bushwalking, either before nor after my 10 year experiment. I really don't understand why people would. A toothbrush does the job of cleaning just fine.

My new dentist reckons dental hygiene is affected more by what you eat than by how much you brush. And more by brushing than by toothpaste. According to him, you need to avoid sticky or sugary foods, and brush regularly.

[TerraMer]

Thank you everyone for contributing your thoughts, advice and experience to this thread. You have given me food for thought (might need some brain floss).

Son of a Beach, thank you. There is a lot to what your dentist said about "what you eat".

Before going vegan I had increasing problems with my teeth and nothing new since. In fact one of the holes is smaller than it was. I thought that was just my imagination until I read Luke001's comment about remineralisation. It might still be my imagination.

Bad breath, not related to tooth and gum decay probably has a lot to do with what you eat and drink too. The bodies of meat eaters, vegetarians and vegans smell very different. I guess same applies to breath.

I wonder how much our gut flora, if anything, effects our oral health?

[GPSGuided]

Or rather, how our oral health affect the rest of the body. Association with cardiovascular disease has already been confirmed.

[puredingo]

You could pack in an apple for each day of your walk? That'll clean your pegs up and give you little vitamin top up taboot.

[Rai]

Datun twigs from neem tree are available in Australia, according to this advert from fishpond: https://www.fishpond.com.au/Health/10-C ... 9969291673
I tried them many many years ago in India. They are quite bitter but leave a fresh clean taste in the mouth without the sickly sweetness of commercially available toothpastes and mouthwashes. Depending upon the size of the twig, each twig can be used a number of times. You just need to cut off the small portion where the fibres have separated due to chewing after use.