Eco-Product Review - Tom's of Maine Orange-Mango Toothpaste
Sarah Jowett
September 28, 2007
I have started to take more notice of the products and foods I buy: how they are made, what they are made of and the business, manufacturing and distribution practices of the company that made them, as well as of the store that sells them. It is a seemingly impossible job to tackle for every product and company out there, but I have to start somewhere, right?
And as usual, I wanted to share what I found with you! :-D
Today I had to get new toothpaste and as I stood there, staring at the multitude of teeth cleansing options, I realized that I was automatically going to reach for Crest, or Aim, or Colgate. But I decided to stop and think about the purchase before just grabbing something and going.
I am trying to be more "natural" by focusing on buying products that are more "natural" as well as companies that support a more "natural" lifestyle to protect the planet from our abuses through their products and company philosophies, and follow it up by practicing it. Tom's of Maine has a reputation for being the type company with "natural" products I was looking for so I decided I would check out one of their toothpastes.
This specific item is Tom's of Maine Natural Whole Care(TM) Anticavity & Tarter Control Plus Whitening Gel Fluoride Toothpaste. Wow, what a mouthful! I didn’t want just another mint flavor, actually I am rather partial to cinnamon, but the only option other than mint was Orange-Mango. The box says it contains "fluoride for cavity protection, zinc citrate to control tarter, silica for whitening, and orange and mango oils, all for a fresh, clean-feeling mouth" (italics copied from product box).
The box also touts that Tom's of Maine uses "100% Recycled Paperboard" and is printed with Soy Ink (alright!), and the company gives back "10% of profits" and encourages "employees to donate 5% of their paid time" to communities, that's okay I guess. I'd rather have them donate the money to some sort of environmental charity or program, but that's better than nothing. As for the product itself, it says that it uses only natural ingredients, which are actually listed on the box such as several items from corn and select ingredients from silica, mangoes, oranges and lemons, and other minerals from the Earth (and other stuff of course, even "natural" stuff has quite a few ingredients).
Now I was ready to examine how does it taste and feel.... I mean a product can be 100% natural, but if it tastes terrible, how likely are you going to be to use it no matter how good it is for the environment? I am glad to say that, even though the taste was rather strong right out of the tube (come on, you've done it too!), actually using it wasn't that bad. A big plus was that there is no harsh, strange aftertaste that is common with alot of whitening and tartar control toothpastes.
While there were only three flavors of Tom's of Maine toothpaste products at my local Target, their web site shows five flavors: Cinnamon-Clove, Peppermint, Spearmint, Wintermint available in both pastes and gels, with Orange-Mango only available in a gel. If you cannot find these products at your local store, you can purchase them online from Drugstore.com, but not directly from Tom's.
You can find out more about Tom's of Maine and their wide variety of products here, tomsofmaine.com.
And as usual, I wanted to share what I found with you! :-D
Today I had to get new toothpaste and as I stood there, staring at the multitude of teeth cleansing options, I realized that I was automatically going to reach for Crest, or Aim, or Colgate. But I decided to stop and think about the purchase before just grabbing something and going.
I am trying to be more "natural" by focusing on buying products that are more "natural" as well as companies that support a more "natural" lifestyle to protect the planet from our abuses through their products and company philosophies, and follow it up by practicing it. Tom's of Maine has a reputation for being the type company with "natural" products I was looking for so I decided I would check out one of their toothpastes.
This specific item is Tom's of Maine Natural Whole Care(TM) Anticavity & Tarter Control Plus Whitening Gel Fluoride Toothpaste. Wow, what a mouthful! I didn’t want just another mint flavor, actually I am rather partial to cinnamon, but the only option other than mint was Orange-Mango. The box says it contains "fluoride for cavity protection, zinc citrate to control tarter, silica for whitening, and orange and mango oils, all for a fresh, clean-feeling mouth" (italics copied from product box).
The box also touts that Tom's of Maine uses "100% Recycled Paperboard" and is printed with Soy Ink (alright!), and the company gives back "10% of profits" and encourages "employees to donate 5% of their paid time" to communities, that's okay I guess. I'd rather have them donate the money to some sort of environmental charity or program, but that's better than nothing. As for the product itself, it says that it uses only natural ingredients, which are actually listed on the box such as several items from corn and select ingredients from silica, mangoes, oranges and lemons, and other minerals from the Earth (and other stuff of course, even "natural" stuff has quite a few ingredients).
Now I was ready to examine how does it taste and feel.... I mean a product can be 100% natural, but if it tastes terrible, how likely are you going to be to use it no matter how good it is for the environment? I am glad to say that, even though the taste was rather strong right out of the tube (come on, you've done it too!), actually using it wasn't that bad. A big plus was that there is no harsh, strange aftertaste that is common with alot of whitening and tartar control toothpastes.
While there were only three flavors of Tom's of Maine toothpaste products at my local Target, their web site shows five flavors: Cinnamon-Clove, Peppermint, Spearmint, Wintermint available in both pastes and gels, with Orange-Mango only available in a gel. If you cannot find these products at your local store, you can purchase them online from Drugstore.com, but not directly from Tom's.
You can find out more about Tom's of Maine and their wide variety of products here, tomsofmaine.com.
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