A toothpaste that causes allergies

Author: He Wenxiu, Zhang Xinyuan, Wu Xuan, Peking Union Medical College Hospital

Reviewer: Guo Chunlan, deputy chief physician, Peking Union Medical College Hospital

Mimi: "Doctor Xiao He, I have ulcers in my mouth recently. They are always red and painful. I can't eat. My mother told me to spray some Jinhoujian, but it doesn't work. What should I do?"

Doctor Xiao He: "Come, sit on the dental chair and let me check you. Oh, have you changed your toothpaste recently?"

Mimi: "Yes, I just changed to a toothpaste with many magical effects a month ago (blah blah...) Look, I haven't even finished one tube yet!"

Doctor Xiao He: "That's right, you are allergic to toothpaste!"

Mimi: "What? What? What? Toothpaste can cause allergies? I've never heard of it!"

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Can toothpaste cause allergies?

Yes, it is the "toothpaste" that everyone uses every day to brush their teeth. I believe this problem is not only troubling Mimi, but also our outpatient clinic has patients who have experienced lip peeling, oral mucosal congestion, ulcers, swollen gums, and pain when eating after changing toothpaste. These symptoms are allergic reactions caused by toothpaste. So, let's take a look at what to do if you are allergic to toothpaste and the basic knowledge of toothpaste!

1. Toothpaste causes allergic reaction of oral mucosa: contact stomatitis

Toothpaste is used in contact with the oral cavity every day, which can cause allergic reactions. The most common allergenic ingredients are the fragrances in toothpaste, such as cinnamon, menthol, etc. This often occurs after a certain period of continuous use of a certain toothpaste, usually manifested as: redness of the skin around the mouth, redness and hyperemia of the oral mucosa, swollen gums and scattered hyperemia points. In severe cases, the surface mucosa may peel off or even ulcerate. The patient himself will experience a sense of woodiness, roughness, and pain in the mouth, and the pain will worsen when eating and brushing teeth. This is contact stomatitis caused by toothpaste. It is necessary to stop using it immediately and take the suspected allergic toothpaste to the hospital to see a professional doctor. First, stop using the suspected allergic toothpaste; second, you can apply anti-inflammatory and healing drugs locally; third, you can also take oral anti-allergic drugs. As long as the above three points are achieved, the patient's oral symptoms will recover soon.

2. Toothpaste is a great helper to maintain oral health

Toothpaste is one of the most commonly used cleaning products. We need to brush our teeth with toothpaste at least twice a day to remove dental plaque and maintain oral hygiene and health. Based on brushing teeth twice a day, every million people need to consume 600 to 800 tons of toothpaste per year, which can fill 20 to 30 containers.

The basic ingredients of toothpaste are complex, including abrasives, detergents, wetting agents, adhesives, preservatives, sweeteners, fragrances, pigments and water. Depending on the purpose of use, it may also contain fluoride, desensitizers, whitening agents or Chinese herbal medicines, etc. Therefore, on the shelves of supermarkets, we can see toothpaste products of various brands, various functions and various flavors, such as anti-allergic, whitening, anti-caries, Chinese medicine ingredients, mint flavor, fruit flavor, etc.

Therefore, as the complexity of toothpaste ingredients increases, the incidence of contact oral mucositis continues to increase.

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3. The safety of toothpaste cannot be ignored

As more functional toothpaste products are launched on the market, the types of flavoring agents and functional ingredients in toothpaste are constantly expanding, and their safety has also attracted increasing attention from regulatory authorities in various countries.

Different countries have different regulations on the toothpaste market. In the United States, toothpaste is considered to have therapeutic effects and is managed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The American Dental Association (ADA) plays an important role in toothpaste safety verification. For example, some fluoride toothpastes and desensitizing toothpastes must pass safety verification before they can be put on the market.

In January 2021, the National Medical Products Administration issued the "Toothpaste Registration Materials Specifications" (draft for comments) in China, further regulating the safety supervision of toothpaste, requiring toothpaste products to be registered in accordance with the regulations of the national drug regulatory authorities before they can be put on the market for sale or import.

Toothpaste is very important for keeping your mouth clean and healthy. We hope that everyone will not ignore the allergy caused by toothpaste while maintaining oral health. When there are signs of "toothpaste allergy", remember to seek help from a professional dentist.

September 20th this year is the 35th "National Love Teeth Day", and the theme of this year is "Oral Health, Whole Body Health". It aims to pay attention to oral health, cultivate good oral hygiene habits, and let our health start from the mouth.

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