Things that we use before going to bed and after getting up, do they have a risk of cancer?

"Remove stains and whiten teeth", "Fight sugar and prevent caries", "Protect gums and resist allergies"

"Anti-inflammatory", "anti-stone", "bad breath removal"

…

Nowadays, more and more functional toothpastes are

When you choose according to your needs

Also note

Some toothpastes pose health risks

Even cancer risk

These two types of toothpaste may cause cancer

1. Toothpaste containing titanium dioxide:

Titanium dioxide is often added to toothpaste. It adheres to the surface of teeth and makes them look very white in a short time.

Titanium dioxide was listed as a Class 2B carcinogen as early as 2017. Class 2B carcinogens are "possible human carcinogens", which means that they have been confirmed to be carcinogenic in animal experiments, but the evidence in human studies is not sufficient to determine their carcinogenic risk to humans.

This does not mean that using toothpaste containing titanium dioxide will definitely cause cancer, because the content of titanium dioxide in toothpaste tested by national formal institutions is very low, and the particle diameter is also within the safe range. However, experts from the French National Institute of Agricultural Research said that long-term use of things containing titanium dioxide and titanium dioxide nanomaterials may affect health!

2. Toothpaste containing triclosan:

Triclosan is a broad-spectrum antibacterial agent and a common antibacterial and anti-caries substance in toothpaste.

Some studies have shown that triclosan may have potential carcinogenic risks. In some experimental animals, exposure to low doses of triclosan can change the intestinal flora of mice, which has an adverse effect on colon inflammation and related colon tumors. Triclosan also has a certain chance of reacting with chlorinated tap water to produce chloroform, which is mildly teratogenic and can induce liver cancer in mice. It may also have potential pathogenic risks to humans. However, whether triclosan is carcinogenic is still controversial. Toothpaste containing this ingredient is still on sale in the market. Please be careful not to swallow it when using it.

Triclosan can also interfere with endocrine, especially the impact on female sex hormones is relatively significant. Therefore, women who are preparing for pregnancy, pregnant, breastfeeding and children are not recommended to use toothpaste containing triclosan for a long time!

How to choose toothpaste correctly?

There is no need to choose too expensive toothpaste when buying it. What matters is whether it contains fluoride and abrasive ingredients.

Fluoride toothpaste can reduce the incidence of tooth decay, but be careful not to swallow it when using it.

Toothpaste mainly uses abrasives to clean tooth enamel. The main components of abrasives are calcium carbonate, calcium hydrogen phosphate and hydrated silica. Although calcium carbonate has a strong cleaning power, it will damage the enamel on the surface of the teeth; the latter two components are milder and less likely to damage teeth.

In addition, please note the following points:

1. Don’t buy toothpaste with too coarse abrasives.

Coarse-grained toothpaste abrasives can more effectively remove pigments from the tooth surface. Although the teeth may appear whiter in the short term, long-term use may damage the tooth enamel.

2. Don’t buy toothpaste containing alcohol.

Although alcohol can disinfect and temporarily cover up bad breath, long-term use will disrupt the balance of oral microecology and cause oral diseases.

3. Use different toothpastes alternately.

Using the same toothpaste for a long time may cause harmful bacteria in the mouth to develop drug resistance. Using different toothpastes alternately is beneficial to maintaining oral health.

4. Don’t blindly choose functional toothpaste

People with relatively healthy oral health can just choose ordinary toothpaste. Blindly choosing functional toothpaste may bring unnecessary side effects to oral health.

At present, the functions of toothpaste recognized by the state are only three: anti-caries, anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic. No matter which type of toothpaste has functions, it cannot replace oral treatment. If you find oral problems, you should go to the dentistry department for treatment as soon as possible.

How to use toothpaste correctly?

1. Don’t share toothpaste with your whole family

If one person in the family has an oral disease, bacteria and viruses can easily remain in the gap between the toothbrush and the toothpaste can be taken out, causing bacteria to remain at the mouth of the toothpaste, and the next person may be infected when brushing their teeth. It is best to have one tube of toothpaste per person.

2. Only a pea-sized amount of toothpaste is needed for brushing

You only need a pea-sized amount of toothpaste to brush your teeth. The more toothpaste you squeeze out, the better the brushing effect will be.

References

[1] Zhang J, Walker ME, Sanidad KZ. Microbial enzymes induce colitis by reactivating triclosan in the mouse gastrointestinal tract. Nat Commun. 2022 Jan 10;13(1):136.

[2] Shi Yao, Wang Ying, Li Yao, et al. Investigation and health risk assessment of nano-titanium dioxide in personal care products[J]. Journal of Ecotoxicology, 2022, 17(04): 533-544.

[3] Sanidad KZ, Xiao H, Zhang G. Triclosan, a common antimicrobial ingredient, on gut microbiota and gut health. Gut Microbes. 2019;10(3):434-437.

[4] Sinicropi, Maria Stefania et al. “Triclosan: A Small Molecule with Controversial Roles.” Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) vol. 11,6 735. 30 May. 2022,

[5] Yang H, Wang W, Romano KA, et al. A common antimicrobial additive increases colonic inflammation and colitis-associated colon tumorigenesis in mice. Sci Transl Med. 2018;10(443):eaan4116.

[6] Sun Donglei, Zhao Tianhe, Zhang Zunzhen. Research progress on the mutagenicity and carcinogenicity of triclosan[J]. Modern Preventive Medicine, 2019, 46(04): 602-604+612.