My dental floss is made from WHAT?

Dental Floss. A teensy weensy innocent little bathroom cabinet item, you’re thinking, right? I was thinking along the same lines, thus never having really investigated it. One day though I wondered… and as I typed “What is dental floss made with?” into my google search window, I  wondered where the curiosity would lead. Jaw dropped. Information digested and here’s your typical list of ingredients in the ‘big brands’ we all know:

  • Nylon – Plastic / Petroleum based. Takes forever to break down in landfill and we globally use enough dental floss to circle the earth several times, per year!
  • Teflon – Yikes. If you’re not sure why teflon is a big no no, read my post on Teflon here. Basically, we’re getting right in there with these harmful, hormone altering PFCs, into our gums and leaching into our blood stream, with a big fat notorious carcinogen – Fabulous! Not…
  • Synthetic Wax covering made from more, you guessed it, petroleum. Our bodies don’t know how to break this stuff down and neither does our planet. Enough said.

Before you decide never to floss again, don’t! Flossing means smaller dental bills, playing a super important role in dental health, and that can only be an excellent thing! I can tell you that Oral B honestly answered my hubby’s question on their facebook page, confirming Teflon coating of their floss – 10 points for transparency, I s’pose!

There are great, natural flosses out there! If you’re in the States or Canada – There are loads on Amazon like this one! and you can now buy in Australia online too through Nourished Life in a biodegradable container to boot!

Dr Tung’s Natura Dental Floss is also a good option –  yes there’s still plastic involved by there is no Teflon nor petroleum wax coating – we’re moving in the right direction!

Same goes for this Dental Floss with Activated Charcoal from Nourished Life is made of Bamboo charcoal filament coated with plant-based wax and Coconut Oil.

This dental lace is a plastic-free option through and through complete with a mini tall glass jar – Bet you didn’t have a glass jar in this shape yet?

For a vegan-friendly option, try this plant-based dental floss from The Eco Floss. It’s made from PLA, a bioplastic made from cornstarch and coated in candelilla wax.

If you’re not in Australia, you’ll find a favourite of mine – RADIUS, Natural Silk Floss – on iHerb.

So, by making the change to a sustainable, natural, beeswax or uncoated coated silk floss, you are avoiding a scary carcinogen or 2 AND making a difference to our planet – I believe that’s what we call a win-win. Please hit one of the share buttons on this piece. I think if everybody knew, they’d make the switch for sure, don’t you?

Low tox – Vote with your dollar for a cleaner Planet!

P.S And one more thing! Come join the info share, articles and inspiration on facebook 🙂

 

 

 

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Comments 34

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      1. Did you ever hear a 1970s Frank Zappa song with lyrics “Movin’ to Montana soon. Gonna be a dental floss tycoon…”. I actually thought dental floss was a crop grown in Montana for a long time! Jeeezzz! But it was the 70s.

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    2. Det fremgår ikke hvad tandtråden er lavet af på Oral-B´s hjemmeside og heller ikke på indpakningen . Jeg forstår nu hvorfor.

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  2. My curiosity got the best of me and I’m glad I checked it out. I hate when you think you are doing something good but turns out you are putting poison in your body! Thanks for the info

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      I agree – but at least we now know & get to spend a fortune on silk dental floss hand spun my monks 😉 Thx for taking the time to comment, Alexx.

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  4. Wow. Thanks for posting this. I’ve been wanting to make my own dental floss because of the unsustainable plastic containers it comes in, but I NEVER even thought about the floss being a problem.

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  5. Today, while I was at work, my sister stole my iPad and
    tested to see if it can survive a 25 foot drop, just so she can be a youtube sensation.
    My iPad is now destroyed and she has 83 views.
    I know this is completely off topic but I had to share
    it with someone!

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  10. On the toothbrushes dangerous question by JK…some are made of plastics that can leech hazardous/carcinogenic chemicals on your gums and into the bloodstream. Same with Teflon coated dental floss as in this article. It’s sad that plastic rules our world and we wonder why cancer and other health issues are on the rise.

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  12. Instead of a dental floss,i just use 3-5 strands of my hair,wether its atached to me or not does not matter.its strong enough,and thin enough to get to those more hard to get to cracks,its organc,its free,its biodegradable.

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    2. You are a badass! I am SO giving this a try. I’ve been researching, desperately looking for vegan and completely biodegradable options and this is obviously the best so far! For others who may not try this. I have found a seller on Etsy called Knotty Floss who appears to sell a Bamboo only floss with NO packaging! it also has activated charcoal mixed in! so cool. However, she also has a bamboo polyester blend floss listed. I contacted her regarding the confusion and hopefully it is not a mistake and I can convince her to ditch the polyester blend. Anyway, cheers to you! XO

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  13. Thank you. Times ago it was made from only nylon. Have use it for furniture upholstery repair, stringing beads and other uses of that sort? Would suggest, that if you have to use a made product to opt for the simpler, use cheaper one— just waxed at most, and not the slippery stuff, that will have the Teflon.

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  16. Silk floss is atrocious from what I’ve read and seen with my own eyes. Silk worms are dropped into hot water so the silk can be released. I would rather have my teeth rot out of my head than hurt an innocent being. I don’t trust Radius’s methods either. According to one source, even “Peace Silk” is not as peaceful as it seems due to the conditions (including placing the cocoons in freezers) they are kept in before leaving the cocoon. I’m no expert but when it comes to humans and money, many very wrong things go. A water flosser is more efficient although still contains plastic, and like I mentioned above, Knotty Floss on Etsy may be selling a bamboo only based floss with zero packaging. Alas, I think Denica takes the cake with her hair floss method! free and natural! can’t beat it. If it’s dirty, just wash the strand, right?

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  18. The Noosa Basics floss is actually made with polyester. It’s 96-98% polyester fibre and 1-2% charcoal fibre. Kinda greenwasher if you ask me.

    Same goes for knotty floss as per comment above.

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      Hi Abby, While Nylon is of course also not ideal, we wanted to provide options that were first and foremost PFOA free, as well as vegan for people who don’t want to use a silk product… it’s great to see innovation all the time with better plastic free options coming out.

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  20. Thank you, I crave for a world where you don’t feel mistrust in almost everything… it’s better to know though, ignorance is not bliss in the long term!! Just glad people are becoming aware of this…all the best to everyone on the comments and the site, thank you

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      Hi Laura, I know it can seem like a lot of hard work, but we are very fortunate these days to have so many wonderful businesses stepping up to do better for the planet x

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