This DIY coconut oil toothpaste is made with bentonite clay, baking soda, peppermint essential oil, and stevia!
I’ve been using bentonite clay and baking soda to brush my teeth with for years! I love the way my teeth feel after scrubbing them with my tooth powder.
The thing is, my kids don’t really like to brush with my tooth powder. I’ve been working on making a coconut oil toothpaste that they would like. The winning recipe was a paste made with baking soda, bentonite clay, essential oils, green stevia and coconut oil (of course)!
Why Make Your Own Tooth Paste?
Most commercial tooth pastes are contaminated with fluoride, sulfates and chemicals that are harmful to the body. Not something I want to put in my mouth — or my kids mouths for that matter!
Bentonite clay is naturally cleansing and will bind to toxins and acidic materials in the mouth. It is often used in tooth powder recipes and is known to help remineralized teeth. Baking soda aids in cleaning and coconut oil adds antibacterial and anti-fungal properties to this tooth scrub. Add a few drops of naturally microbial peppermint essential oil and you have a super germ fighting tooth scrub that doesn’t taste so bad…. once you get used to it!
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Coconut Oil Tooth Scrub
This DIY coconut oil toothpaste is made with bentonite clay, baking soda, peppermint essential oil, and stevia!
Ingredients
- 4 Tablespoons Coconut Oil
- 2 Tablespoons Bentonite Clay
- 2 Tablespoons Baking Soda
- 1/2 Teaspoon Natural Green Stevia
- 10–15 Drops of Peppermint Essential Oil
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients until smooth and blended (I used my food processor to mix them up).
- You may add more coconut oil or dry ingredients to create a paste with a texture you prefer. Store in an airtight container.
Oil pulling is a growing trend, but it’s not a new concept. In fact, the practice of oil pulling started in India thousands of years ago.
This is exactly what I was looking for, making my own toothpaste. Thanks for sharing.
Cheers, Elna
Can we just put coconut oil and baking but nothing else?
Yes that’ll work fine.
Thank you for this recipe, I made this today and am looking forward to using it. However, I was following your directions and pulled out my blender,/food processor to realize this was a bad idea. As you probably know, bentonite clay binds to metals and unless there are food processors that aren’t equipped with metal blades, this step should be foregone. The clay will pull elements from the blade and now you’re brushing your teeth with that. Just thought I would share this with anyone who happens upon this dated post
Hi Tiffany, I heard bentonite clay shouldn’t be in contact with metal. I have crowns, would it be ok to use this tooth paste?
Grace If you have metal filings you really should replace them. They are Mercury based and you are slowly ingesting mercury which can cause a lot of health issues.
Just wanted to know what I could use in place of the stevia.
Thanks
I use xylitol in my homemade toothpaste recipes. Xylitol also has benefits for teeth health. If your in Canada you can buy it at London Drugs 🙂
The use of a food processor is unnecessary because, as you presumably well know, bentonite clay binds to metals, even the blades. You’re using the clay to clean your teeth, which is a bad idea since the clay will absorb some of the components from the toothbrush’s blade. I figured this would be of interest to anybody stumbles across this old article.
★★★★★
do you find that this coconut oil toothpaste clogs your sink? I want to make it, but clay can really absorb moisture, and I want to avoid plumbing issues. I had a clay store bought toothpaste before, and I feel like it clogged the sink.
Don’t spit oils in the sink, instead use the bin ??
great recipe!, should you sanitize your container?.
Why the need for clay? Just curious. Thanks!
Clay has natural purgatory properties, giving it the ability to easily draw out toxins. It also balances the pH of your mouth, which makes it the best possible alternative to fluoride-laden toothpastes! 🙂
Thank you! I love going natural.
I have been making our toothpaste for a year now. I’ve always added essential oil to it and most recently peppermint. I have been informed that it wasn’t food grade eo. Could it be a hazard for my two year old who definitely ingests some of my paste?
may be use peppermint essence, like the food colouring. you can buy chocolate essence and other flavours as well. These are edible.
🙂
Would this toothpaste be suitable for very sensitive teeth??
I find since switching to all natural
coconut oil or clay toothpaste like earth paste made my sensitive go away immediately
you can try and see how it feels
and if it’s too abrasive for you then you can always cut back the ingredients until your mouth heals and repairs itself
add the important ingredients though
to remineralise your mouth and help aid healing
but it is known that these natural ingredients even just one or the other helps heal sensitivity 😉
can I make this without the clay, I don’t want to have to order it on amazon and not use it all or spend too much, I do wanna try it though, I love homemade stuff, I’ve made a paste with the baking soda and sea salt and peroxide and distilled water but not everyone likes it, and my son 2 years old hates the salt taste
It would seem to me that coconut oil would eventually clog drains. Some say run hot water when you pour coconut oil down the drain. Problem with that is the hot water would eventually cool some place in the pipe enroute to the sewer. Thus, cooling of the water results in hardening of the coconut oil. That occurring repeatedly at the same place in the drain pipe leaving the house could cause a clog somewhere in the drain pipe underground. That would be expensive to fix.
Could I just use Xylitol instead of Stevia?
hi thank you for this recipe. i use my own toothpaste as well. but never thouht of using the steavia powder. or the clay. i just use the salt and baking soda . peppermint oil as well. so thanks for this recipe. what dose the clay do? and can you use any clay like an australia one we have here.?
Will spitting this into the sink clog the drain?
FYI….it is potentially hazardous to people with fillings. You don’t want to risk mercury leaching from the filling and then in contact with the skin/body. Really. That’s the only reason I haven’t doing oil pulling.
wont the coconut oil get hard and clog your pipes? ive been thinking of making that body scrub with coconut oil but worried that it might clog my plumbing. would it happen or is it unheard of even with usage such as pulling?
I’ve been using coconut oil with some Thieves Essential Oil and it works great. I have a broken tooth that is actually improving since I started using this. No pain or inflammation from it any longer. Maybe I will switch off with the Peppermint EO once a day. Can’t “scrub” my teeth because of receding gums but they have improved also with using the coconut oil and Thieves.
One confirmation please, based on the ingredients, I see no reason with eating the toothpaste after you are done brushing. Health benefits from each, assuming that your bentonite clay is food grade. Would you encourage this as well? Thank you
Hi Tiffany! I am thinking of converting to this toothpaste recipe but like many other families..we are on a budget. Before I switch could you tell me how long this recipe you have provided should last for 2 adults and if you think it would be safe to use on my 13 month old..when she eventually gets teeth lol! Thanks!
I love this recipe, but use cinnamon and clove in it instead of the sweeteners. My teeth feel smooth and silky after I brush them.
Did not see it mentioned that you should never use metal utensils to stir or store bentonite clay in metal containers.
Good point Paula. I use plastic caps on my mason jars. The smaller jars.
I made this and it is hard as a rock. How do I make it soft enough to brush my teeth?
Try first coconut oil with some baking soda only. That is enough.
how long will this tooth paste last before it goes bad?
Can I use regular stevia?
I’m sure that would work just fine.
Could I use Montmorillonite clay instead? It’s also known as Red Desert Clay, edible clay.
Bentonite clay is Montmorillonite. It is a member of the Montmorillonite family.
I love the way it makes my teeth feel, but I think it is aggravating my lips a bit. I’ve notice the inner side of my lips feel slightly raw. Has anyone else had this? Should I decrease the baking soda?
Yes, Jessica, I have experienced the same thing! Maybe cut back (or leave out) the EO and/or baking soda?? I would hate to think it was the clay that is the problem since that’s a major component of the recipe! Could be some of us have very sensitive mouth tissues.
This is by far the BEST DIY tooth powder I’ve seen thus far! My son (he’s almost 5) and I are BIG fans! Thank you!! =) (BTW, we used non-GMO xylitol in place of stevia.) One last thing, I’ll be sharing this link on my own blog as I write a post about my body care uses of coconut oil. In other words, credit for the recipe will be given to you.
I’ve been doing it for months without the stevia and love it!!!! I even have my 13yr old doing it. Thanks. .. love ya
white teeth all about/
puredentalwhite.com
Love it! Could you add activated charcoal to this?
Hi, this may sound like a silly question but what is the stevia for? can this recipe be made without the stevia?
Stevia helps with taste. Baking soda is salty and stevia balances it out a little. It’s optional.
I know people are unsure about the sweetener..but I skipped it and added fine celtic sea salt instead. I would have rather used Himalayan salt but couldn’t find it. My mixture came out a bit more wet than your photo and felt like I was brushing my teeth with natural peanut butter lol..but my teeth felt clean afterwards. I just have to get used to the consistency. Thanks a bunch for the recipe!
Good idea to use salt over stevia! I will have to try that next time. 🙂
I just made mine and used salt instead of sweet, I used a Himalayan pink ground very fine. I noticed that my peppermint says “not for internal use”, but I don’t swallow it anyway so I’m good.
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I bought my first bottle of Himalayan salt at Costco. I love that it has a grinder top! =]
I put xylatol in mine instead of stevia. I love this stuff! after using for a bit, realized that my teeth are whiter than using reg. toothpaste.
Spit in the trashcan? Does it clog the plumbing to spit coco oil in the sink? When I do oil-pulling, I discard the oil in the trash….
i add calcium and xylitol. xylitol isnt particularly natural but its anticavity. also i’ll add some liquid magnesium. remineralizes the teeth.
Can you use veg. glycerin instead of stevia?
My dentist is always telling me that abrasives such as baking soda and this clay take enamel off my teeth, but I would like to try this. I stopped using regular toothpaste two years ago, have been using Tooth Soap
Can you leave out the baking soda and it still be useful? I have made toothpaste before but found bs to harsh..
Awesome! I have been wanting to find an easy yet better than commercially prepared toothpaste recipe for quite a while now. I am whipping this up tomorrow and looking forward to improving my dental health. Thanks so much for posting.
Where do you buy this natural, unrefined stevia? I can’t find green anywhere…all I ever run across is white. I still use it, but I’d love to go for as natural as possible and use the green.
I purchased it from amazon.
Have you thought of switching out the Stevia for Xylitol which is a known fighter of tooth decay?
Yes, but I don’t really feel comfortable using xylitol. I don’t really tnink it is a safe sweetener… I get stomach pains when i use it too!
Even though I had settled upon a natural toothpaste my family and I were reasonably happy with, I decided to try “just one more” and I’m so glad I did! By far and away this is my favorite in terms of flavor, texture, and efficacy. My teeth feel incredibly clean after brushing and perhaps even whiter 🙂 Thanks!
I’m so glad you like it, Quinn! Thank you for sharing!
Accidentally bought bentonite detox instead of clay. Can I still use it?
I love this idea! Thinking about adding xylitol to the mix.
When I started this journey to change our lives and habits, this was one of the first sites I came across. I started oil pulling first off. I have one wisdom tooth left in my upper left jaw, and it is a hot mess of crooked. It was pretty painful at that time as well, but when I started the oil pulling daily, the pain went away. Then I got a lump on the gum-line. A hard, uncomfortable lump.
I made this toothpaste eight days ago. The lump was gone in three of those days. I like it, not only for the lump going away so quickly, but also because I’m not using things I can’t pronounce that aren’t good for me in my body. I’m the only one in the house that will use it so far, but I am delighted with it.
I’m all kinds of excited about the changes we’ve made so far. We have a long way to go – converting a strong willed 15 year old (she’s like her mama) and a stubborn, bad eating, soda drinking 62 year old man from the bad stuff to the good hasn’t been easy, but even with the slow progress, we are all feeling healthier and getting into the groove.
Looks like a good recipe. I love my Toothsoap Whip for now though, maybe when I run out.
how do you get it from the container to the toothbrush? don’t like the idea of dipping in as it seems unsanitary. it seems to me you’d need to transfer it w/something you don’t use again or at least don’t use w/o washing it again. I have not yet made my own toothpaste, but am considering it & was thinking of using a little demitasse spoon to transfer.
I just dip into the toothpaste with a clean finger and then apply the paste on my toothbrush.
Take a look at Humangear Go Toob , refillable silicone tubes. They are a little pricey but reusable for many years.
I cut up a plastic straw and then push the pieces into the toothpaste. Then all I have to do is push it out of the straw onto my toothbrush. This was the most sanitary way I could think of. 🙂
Popsicle stick
You can find tooth paste type containers for backpacking, they are open on one end so you can fill it, and a cap on the other end. That way it is washable to.
Any concern about using this with a 2 year-old? I’d love to give it a try but want to make sure it’s not an issue if some gets swallowed…
What specific brand of Bentonite Clay and Natural Green Stevia do you use? I am new to real food ingredients and there are so many to choose from!
I read up on this and some places that sell Bentonite Clay also tell you not to ingest it. I purchased Redmond Clay, which can be found at most natural health food stores, and the label does say it CAN be ingested..so you can definitely use it as toothpaste.
Calcium Benonite is ingestable. Sodium Benonite is not.
im not sure on where to buy the clay and green stevia. im from Australia and live in a country town. can you give me some ideas of shops on where to get these items.
thanks
Jo
Have you tried using glycerin in your toothpaste? I used it the last batch I made. It worked great, and since glycerin has a kind of sweet taste, I didn’t need any sweetener, just the essential oil. I thought it made the powder much easier to use. I just put about a pea-sized amount on the toothbrush and it was plenty. Has lasted well, too.
Glycerin coats the teeth preventing remineralization to occur.
how much glycerine do i use ?