Toothpaste in the eco-test: 19 products fail - including many well-known brands

Toothpaste is supposed to protect the teeth, but sometimes undesirable substances are used.

Which toothpaste brands fail the eco-test?

Kassel/Berlin – The use of titanium dioxide in food is now banned.

Nevertheless, the substance is still found in many toothpastes.

This is the result of the consumer magazine Öko-Test.

That's why 19 of the 48 toothpastes failed in his universal toothpaste test - including some well-known brands.

Universal toothpastes under the magnifying glass: 19 out of 48 toothpaste products fail the eco-test

Toothpaste should do one thing above all: protect teeth from tooth decay and other things that can attack and damage them.

The fluorides in the toothpaste are particularly responsible for this.

Although the substance titanium dioxide is banned in food and also in many cosmetic articles, it can still be found in many toothpastes.

Only 13 of the 48 products tested by the Öko-Test do without controversial substances.

A total of 19 universal toothpastes even received the ratings "poor" and "unsatisfactory" in the test - including several branded products.

48 universal toothpastes were tested, which cost between 39 cents and 5.99 euros.

The losers include well-known toothpastes from Colgate, blend-a-med, Aronal, Signal, Odol-Med 3, Lacalut, Dr.

Hauschka and Weleda.

Titanium dioxide is not the only substance that led to a bad rating.

Sodium lauryl sulfate is often used for foaming, but it can irritate the sensitive mucous membranes.

In seven of the 48 toothpastes tested, the fluoride that is supposed to improve the remineralization of the teeth is missing.

Many well-known brands failed the Öko-Test last year.

These toothpastes received the rating "insufficient":

• blend-a-med Complete Protect Expert deep cleansing

• blend-a-med all-round protection Classic

• Colgate 8in1 Extra Fresh

• Colgate Max Fresh Cooling Crystals Cool Mint

• Colgate Total Original

• Dentagard herbs

• Lacalut Active Medical Toothpaste

• Odol-med3 Original

• Signal Sport Gel Fresh Toothpaste

• Aronal gum protection

• Ajona Stomaticum Medicinal Toothpaste Concentrate

Which universal toothpastes perform best?

The dye titanium dioxide was a particular thorn in the side of Öko-Test.

This has been classified as unsafe by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).

In toothpastes, this should ensure a shiny white surface.

Titanium dioxide has been banned in food since 2022, but not in cosmetics – including toothpaste.

"However, many manufacturers reported back to us that they had already changed their recipes or would change them in the near future," writes Öko-Test.

It's high time: Titanium dioxide is still contained in many toothpastes for children.

These toothpastes finished the eco-test with "very good" - and are cheap:

• Bevola Herbal Toothpaste (Kaufland)

• Eurodont toothpaste Coolfresh (Aldi)

• Elkos Denta Max Fluor Fresh tooth gel (Edeka)

• Dentalux Triple Protection Freshness Gel (Lidl)

• Diadent Tooth Gel Fluor Fresh (Netto/Budni)

• Dontodent herbal toothpaste (DM)

The test winners do not include any branded products known to many consumers.

The toothpastes from Diadent, Dontodent, Elkos, Bevola and Eurodont, among others, scored “very good”.

The special thing about these test winners: They all cost 39 cents per tube.

According to Öko-Test, expensive does not necessarily mean better.

Only one of the toothpastes rated “very good” costs more than one euro.

Some of the losers in the test cost up to six euros.

Consumers should definitely pay attention to the ingredients when buying.

According to Öko-Test, many universal toothpastes with natural cosmetics certification have a decisive disadvantage

17 of the tested universal toothpastes even had a natural cosmetics certification.

According to Öko-Test, many of them contain no fluoride at all.

Instead, amounts of the problematic heavy metal lead were detected.

There are also serious differences in the assessment of universal toothpastes, which are recognized as natural cosmetics.

Of the seven toothpastes without fluoride, only one did not receive the rating "inadequate" - the Niyok toothpaste made from coconut oil was only "inadequate".

Caution is not only required when choosing toothpaste.

Öko-Test also recently warned of dangerous ingredients in spaghetti.