Alternative uses for toothpastes! How many do you know?
Before we go into our list, we have ask ourselves, what are toothpastes made of in the first place? What we know as a toothpaste are actually a mix of abrasives that help getting rid off the the dental plaque from the surface of our teeth, as well as helping with bad breath and keeping our gums healthy. In small amounts, toothpaste is not harmful, but please, do not swallow a large amount of toothpaste (on a dare for example)! Toothpaste has a certain amount of flouride that can cause you adverse effects if you eat it.
Some of the most common abrasives used in toothpaste is aluminium hydroxide, calcium carbonate and other silicas, as well as flouride that helps on preventing cavities and the protection of enamel. In short, there are several things you can do with toothpastes thanks to their abrasive action. Let’s see some of the common:
- One of the most popular alternative uses of toothpaste is as a cleaner for headlights on cars. Grab a rag or an old towel to scrub the paste all over the foggy headlights. You can even use a left over toothbrush if you want to make it quicker.
- The second most well known use is as a defogger for googles. This is a great tip if you are going to do some snorkeling in Cancun.
- Clean the grime under an iron. Yep! You can clean that strange stain on your iron with some non-gel toothpaste. Obviously, the iron needs to be disconnected and turned off before you start cleaning.
- So… if you can scrub and clean an Iron… can you do the same with jewelry? The answer is yes! You can give a second life to your rings, bracelets and other gems.
- A little bit of toothpaste can also help you out getting a strange smell off your hands.
For all these its recommended to use only non-gel toothpastes and a slightly wet towel or rag to clean it off.
Maybe after reading all these uses you are wondering… “Wow! Should I even put toothpaste in my mouth? Seems too strong!”. We will say this: always use regular toothpastes unless your dentist directs you otherwise, specially with whitening toothpastes. These are really abrasive and might end up damaging your teeth causing you sensitivity and more issues if they have not been prescribed by a dentist. A final tip for a better dental hygiene is to place the toothpaste directly on you teeth first instead of the toothbrush.