Children's nutritional toothpaste

Children's nutritional toothpaste is not an IQ tax, but it is definitely not a "magic for tooth protection." It is a bonus care product for specific oral problems, not a rigid necessity that all children must buy.

Last week, I accompanied my relative's 4-year-old Chengzi to the Maternity and Child Health Hospital for fluoride application. While I was waiting for the consultation, I heard three or four parents chatting. They were all talking about the nutritional toothpastes for children that they had recently bought. Some said it was added with vitamins to repair gums, some said it contained calcium to repair cavities, and some said it would prevent cavities without using fluoride brushes. The doctor I saw that day happened to be a pediatric dentist I have known for almost five years. She also laughed when we chatted. She said that the number of parents asking about this has at least tripled in the past six months.

When I was evaluating maternal and infant products in the past two years, I tested 27 children's toothpastes labeled as "nutritional". I also talked about this category with two university oral care researchers and three first-line pediatric dentists. To put it bluntly, the industry's attitude towards it is indeed divided into two groups, and there is no unified standard answer.

Many old experts who have been pediatric dentists for 20 to 30 years basically feel that the marketing attribute of the word "nutrition" is far greater than its actual effect. Think about it, the whole process of brushing your teeth only takes 1-2 minutes. After most of the ingredients are spit out with the foam, less than 3% of the nutrients remaining in the mouth are less than 3%. This is the survey data published by the China Oral Cleaning and Care Products Industry Association in 2023. It simply cannot reach the threshold for absorption by the gums or teeth. Take the "calcium-containing enamel repair" featured in many products as an example. Tooth enamel is a non-renewable hard tissue. If demineralization and caries occur, the tiny amount of calcium in toothpaste cannot repair it at all. At most, it can be combined with fluoride to slightly improve the remineralization efficiency. It is far less effective than going to the hospital to apply fluoride or using fluoride tooth moisturizer. I have been in trouble before. I bought my nephew a certain imported nutritious toothpaste that claimed to be able to repair early caries. It cost almost 120 yuan. After brushing for three months, the shallow caries and black spots on the big teeth were not gone at all. In the end, I went to the hospital and applied fluoride three times to stabilize it.

However, this does not mean that all nutritional supplements are IQ taxes. In recent years, scholars who have conducted research on children’s oral microecology generally feel that some clinically proven ingredients can indeed play a role in auxiliary care. For example, toothpaste added with highly active lactoferrin can inhibit the reproduction rate of Streptococcus mutans and is suitable for children who are prone to bad breath and red and swollen gums. ； There are also those with added fructo-oligosaccharides and active probiotics, which can adjust the balance of oral flora. My best friend’s baby used to get oral ulcers when the seasons changed. I switched to a regular brand of lactoferrin toothpaste. After using it for almost two months, the frequency of ulcers has really dropped a lot. But these are all based on "the toothpaste itself contains fluoride up to standard." If a nutritional toothpaste does not contain fluoride, no matter how many active ingredients are added, it will fail in terms of the core requirement of preventing moth.

Having said this, someone will definitely ask, my child always swallows toothpaste and dare not use fluoride-containing toothpaste. Is it okay to buy fluoride-free nutritional toothpaste? In fact, this issue has been debated for many years. Parents who are afraid of fluoride always think that if they swallow too much, they will get dental fluorosis. Indeed, long-term excessive intake of fluoride does have this risk, but according to the standard dosage, there is no need to worry: 0-3 years old use a rice-sized toothpaste every time, even if it is swallowed, the fluoride intake is only about 0.1mg, which is far below the daily safe intake threshold. If you are really afraid of residue, just wipe the child's mouth with clean gauze after brushing. I have seen many parents use fluoride-free nutritious toothpaste for their children in order to be "safe", and then half of the teeth are rotten after brushing. It is really not worth the gain.

To be honest, there is no need to worry too much about choosing nutritional toothpaste for children, and there is no need to follow the trend and buy the most expensive one. If your child’s oral condition is usually in good condition and he brushes his teeth carefully, ordinary fluoride-containing children’s toothpaste will be enough. There is no need to spend tens or hundreds of dollars to buy one with the suffix “nutrition”. ； If your child often suffers from red and swollen gums or ulcers, or is particularly repelled by the taste of ordinary toothpaste, you can choose a nutritional model with transparent ingredients, up to standard fluoride content, and clinically proven active ingredients, which can really save you a lot of worry.

Oh, by the way, don’t believe the nonsense that “using nutritious toothpaste eliminates the need to apply fluoride or see a dentist.” The core of tooth care has always been the correct brushing method, the frequency of brushing twice a day, and the oral examination once every six months. Toothpaste, whether it is ordinary or nutritious, is just an auxiliary tool in the end. Don’t mix the priorities.