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    Let's talk toothpaste!

    About eighteen months ago my dentist suggested I use this stuff called Clinpro 5000. It's a high fluoride anti-cavity mixture. It's also four times as expensive as yer regular brands. Normally I'd say fuck that for lark, but I, with the help of this particular dentist, have rescued most of my teeth from oblivion so I groaned inwardly and agreed to give it a try. Well, not only is it OK, but I'm still working on the original tube today!! It's incredible, and made me wonder how much conventional toothpaste gets washed down the plughole without doing anything at all. A lot apparently. Adults need a blob about the size of a pea, rather than the brush-length art nouveau swash pictured in the ads, and kids only need a mini-blob the size of a grain of rice. Fine but even if you know that, it's bloody hard to do. The viscosity of the paste and the size of the hole in the tube makes it almost impossible to squeeze out that little. Clinpro, OTOH, is the thickness of window putty and the hole in the tube is about half the diameter of Crest, Colgate and the rest. That's why I'm still working on the original tube. It's a conspiracy I tell ya! Intended to do nothing more than gouge more money out of the dentally concerned consumer!

    Can you think of anymore examples of unintentional waste?
    Last edited by Amor de Cosmos; 24-02-2019, 02:34.

    #2
    I use the round Oral-B electric toothbrush, which kind of forces me to use no more than the size of a pea. I use Sensodyne toothpaste because occasionally I have heat or cold sensitivity and it really does stop it from happening.

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      #3
      I use a Phillips Sonicare which has a traditional shaped brush, but you're right the Oral B, which I've also used, should cut down on toothpaste though it goes through heads faster than the Sonicare. I used Sensodyne for years before the Clinpro. No complaints other that my dentist reckons the latter is better for gum recession.

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        #4
        Originally posted by Amor de Cosmos View Post
        About eighteen months ago my dentist suggested I use this stuff called Clinpro 5000. It's a high fluoride anti-cavity mixture. It's also four times as expensive as yer regular brands. Normally I'd say fuck that for lark, but I, with the help of this particular dentist, have rescued most of my teeth from oblivion so I groaned inwardly and agreed to give it a try. Well, not only is it OK, but I'm still working on the original tube today!! It's incredible, and made me wonder how much conventional toothpaste gets washed down the plughole without doing anything at all. A lot apparently. Adults need a blob about the size of a pea, rather than the brush-length art nouveau swash pictured in the ads, and kids only need a mini-blob the size of a grain of rice. Fine but even if you know that, it's bloody hard to do. The viscosity of the paste and the size of the hole in the tube makes it almost impossible to squeeze out that little. Clinpro, OTOH, is the thickness of window putty and the hole in the tube is about half the diameter of Crest, Colgate and the rest. That's why I'm still working on the original tube. It's a conspiracy I tell ya! Intended to do nothing more than gouge more money out of the dentally concerned consumer!

        Can you think of anymore examples of unintentional waste?
        Most of modern life?

        Not sure that it is intentional, but gods, those collectible things that evil unboxing videos on YouTube pitch at little girls contain so much waste it's criminal. Here's the plastic wrapper. Here's the plastic wrappers inside. Here's the egg thing it's in that you smash and throw in the bin. Here's more plastic wrappers inside that.

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          #5
          I use toothpaste in a similar tube to the one mentioned by AdC. I get through about a tube a year.

          (It's a "special" toothpaste for smokers (i.e. it's twice the price), but I've conned myself into believing it works. It's a good job I don't drink red wine or black tea, as I'd then not only have to buy two more "special" toothpastes, but I'd also spend half my waking hours brushing my teeth.)

          The packaging waste that Eggchaser mentioned is one of the many, many things in life that get my goat. My toothpaste used to come in a "naked" tube ("Right, Brian, that's it! Either you promise to cancel that subscription to the satellite channels or I'm packing my bags this very instant!"), but for the last couple of years, the tube's been sold in a cardboard carton. No need for it.
          Last edited by treibeis; 24-02-2019, 09:28.

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            #6
            When I was a kid we used a toothpaste called Ajona, which is a bit controversial because it contains no fluoride (some other stuff in it supposedly compensates for that). The packaging has been unchanged in many decades. Their advice is to use a blob the size of a Lentil. It's refreshing when manufacturers tell you to use their product sparingly.

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              #7
              I have "shop teeth", so now it's pretty much wire brush and dettol.

              The best I have come across is one of the Arm & Hammer things, where the toothpaste was slightly salty and abrasive, and actually did whiten my tooth.

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                #8
                Does salt work?

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                  #9
                  I use Sensodyne because it is one of the few brands that doesn't have sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS). It's a foaming agent that doesn't actually do anything good, it just creates more bubbles when brushing to impress customers. What it does do to me, however, is cause canker sores. I spent the first thirty years of my life suffering from these and just assumed they were a part of who I was, until I read that toothpaste could be causing them. I changed brand and they went away. Arseholes at Colgate, huh

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                    #10
                    Originally posted by anton pulisov View Post
                    I use Sensodyne because it is one of the few brands that doesn't have sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS). It's a foaming agent that doesn't actually do anything good, it just creates more bubbles when brushing to impress customers. What it does do to me, however, is cause canker sores. I spent the first thirty years of my life suffering from these and just assumed they were a part of who I was, until I read that toothpaste could be causing them. I changed brand and they went away. Arseholes at Colgate, huh
                    I use Sensodyne for the same reason although my mouth ulcers^ only came on since I've been on immuno suppressants. I also get them from potato and chocolate. Bizarre.

                    ^I'm guessing a mouth ulcer and a canker sore are the same thing.

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                      #11
                      Originally posted by Sporting View Post
                      Does salt work?
                      Yes, but it isn't sodium chloride type thing. It's more your O-level solute/solvent type thing.

                      (I have literally no fucking idea.)

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                        #12
                        This is where I mention the classic children's book 'Help! I'm Being Held Prisoner in a Toothpaste Factory' where someone was putting messages in the stripes.

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                          #13
                          I swapped my brand to avoid SLS and stopped getting mouth ulcers. I also avoid SLS in other products if I can.

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