Study Reveals Brushing Teeth With Toothpaste Could Damage Health

A new scientific study suggests that brushing your teeth twice a day with toothpaste is detrimental to your health. A chemical found in toothpaste could be destroying the good bacteria in the gut necessary for optimal well-being. The Mirror reports: Triclosan, an anti-microbial and anti-fungal agent used in making toothpaste, has been found to destroy good bacteria necessary for human health. The chemical, which is also found in soaps, deodorants, mouth washes, kitchen utensils, cutting boards, toys, bedding, socks and rubbish bags, is readily absorbed through the skin. It can then be absorbed into the gastrointestinal tracts, showing up in urine and breast milk. Experiments on zebrafish showed it quickly disrupted communities of bugs in the digestive system important for human health. Dysfunction to this ‘microbiome’ has been linked with diabetes, heart disease, arthritis and malnutrition. Some bacteria were more susceptible to the impact of triclosan – such as the family Enterobacteriaceae – and others were more resilient like the genus Pseudomonas. It is not clear what the implication may be for animal or human health but it is feared compromising bacteria in the intestinal tract could contribute to the development of disease. Zebrafish are an important animal model to [...]