Helicobacter pylori, which infects more than 768 million people nationwide, can be killed with a tube of toothpaste?

We use toothpaste every day to clean teeth, prevent tooth decay and reduce sensitivity.

But now there is a kind of internet-famous toothpaste on the market, which is advertised as "anti-Helicobacter pylori" and "Helicobacter pylori-removing", and can effectively inhibit Helicobacter pylori.

Helicobacter pylori is classified as a "Class 1 carcinogen" by the International Agency for Research on Cancer and is the pathogen of many diseases such as indigestion, chronic gastritis, and gastric cancer.

▲The picture comes from Qianku.com

According to the "Fifth National Consensus on the Treatment of Helicobacter pylori Infection" released in 2017, the number of people infected with Helicobacter pylori in my country is 768 million, accounting for more than 50%.

So a quick search on Taobao shows that some of these "anti-Helicobacter toothpastes" have monthly sales of up to 8,000+.

However, many people also doubt: Is this toothpaste really effective or just a gimmick?

This time, we bought 7 types of "anti-Helicobacter pylori toothpaste" to find out!

What is anti-pyloric toothpaste? Toothpaste is generally registered as "cosmetics", but we found that these 7 toothpastes also have "elimination" and "medical" numbers.

What is going on?

We speculate that this may be because "cosmetic products" are not allowed to explicitly or implicitly claim to have medical effects, that is, they cannot be advertised as having the ability to remove Helicobacter pylori.

In order to link it to Helicobacter pylori, the manufacturer thought of applying for other registrations.

Although "Xiao Zi Hao" has a bactericidal effect, there are not only "harmful bacteria" but also "beneficial bacteria" in the mouth. Long-term use may lead to an imbalance of oral microorganisms.

The "medical device" is also called cold compress gel. Its intended use is for physical fever reduction in the human body and is only used for closed soft tissues, such as skin and subcutaneous tissue, blood vessels, nerves and tendons.

But the scope of application of these toothpastes says that they are for "daily oral cleaning and care". Isn't that a bit contradictory?

Okay, let’s put aside the matter for now, will these toothpastes be effective against Helicobacter pylori?

Before answering this question, we need to first understand Helicobacter pylori.

What is Helicobacter pylori? Helicobacter pylori is a very special bacterium that can survive in the highly acidic gastric juice, that is, it lives in our stomach.

Since Helicobacter pylori exists in our stomach, the Helicobacter pylori-killing toothpaste works in the oral cavity, and the oral cavity is still a certain distance away from the stomach. How can it be said that it kills Helicobacter pylori?

The merchant explains that this type of toothpaste can clean Helicobacter pylori (HP) in the mouth.

However, relevant studies have shown that due to the harsh living conditions of Helicobacter pylori and the influence of other bacteria in the mouth, it is currently impossible to determine whether Helicobacter pylori exists in the mouth.

Since we are not sure whether it exists, there is no question of "killing Helicobacter pylori".

Moreover, there is a lack of evidence to support whether reducing oral Helicobacter pylori infection can reduce gastric Helicobacter pylori infection.

What has been confirmed so far is that the stomach is the main habitat of Helicobacter pylori.

Therefore, it is unlikely that Helicobacter pylori can be cured by simply brushing your teeth.

Even if toothpaste is useful, why do we need medicine?

Judging from the current evidence, the registration of Helicobacter pylori-killing toothpaste is chaotic and supervision needs to be strengthened.

In addition, the reason why this toothpaste is so popular among consumers is mainly due to their misunderstanding of Helicobacter pylori.

Many people are afraid of the word "Helicobacter pylori" and think that having Helicobacter pylori means stomach cancer.

Merchants are taking advantage of people's panic about Helicobacter pylori to promote their products.

But in fact, it takes a long time for Helicobacter pylori to develop into gastric cancer. As long as you follow the doctor's advice and take medicine on time, it can usually be eliminated.

If you put your hope on anti-Helicobacter toothpaste and delay the treatment, it will affect your health.

Everyone please don't rush to seek medical treatment when you are sick!

References:

1. Yang Kaiyu, Li Yuqing, Zhou Xuedong. Research progress on the relationship between oral Helicobacter pylori and gastric Helicobacter pylori infection[J]. West China Journal of Stomatology, 2014, 32(3).

2. Zhang Hui et al. Effect of oral Helicobacter pylori infection on the efficacy of gastric Helicobacter pylori eradication and its related factors[J]. Chinese General Practice, 2016, 19(11).

3. CCTV Joint Focus: Can "Helicobacter pylori-killing toothpaste" really kill Helicobacter pylori? 4. https://tv.cctv.com/2020/11/12/VIDEDDkxdUoNvqyEPoDNcW99201112.shtml?spm=C53156045404.PORCMBcavyhG.0.0