We’ve been using Tom’s of Maine for awhile. While I prefer it (and it’s fluoride-free recipe) over conventional toothpaste, I was tired of the price. I was also tired of running out and forgetting to get more at the store. Since we’ve switched to homemade toothpaste, we’ve not only saved oodles of money but we’ve both noticed a difference in bad breath and morning breath after several weeks of use. And my hygienist (er, aunt) swears this is better than any toothpaste on the market and habitually prescribes it for her patients.
I’ve been tinkering with the recipe for awhile now and I think I have it perfected. The “parts” for me refers to teaspoons. Because I don’t know the shelf life of these ingredients once mixed and only two of us use this toothpaste, I prefer to only make a small batch at a time. If you have more people using it, try making it with tablespoons instead.
Ingredients:
4 parts baking soda
2 parts Aloe Vera – Uh, make sure you don’t get the kind made for sunburns. This needs to be 100% Aloe Vera, fresh from a plant or a food grade store-bought. My plant died in an out-of-character cold snap, so I went with a pure Skin Gel from Aloe Life
1 part hydrogen peroxide
1 part water (you can add more water and peroxide for a thinner consistency)
1 part peppermint extract (available at the grocery store)
Directions: Put it all in a small jar with a tight lid (I use a small canning jar). Shake it up baby now. You could even do a little twist and shout. I use a tiny little spoon to scoop out a small amount (pea-size) for each use. This is in order to keep the jar relatively germ-free since there are no preservatives (albeit the baking soda may help preserve to some small extent). The jar and lid are easily washable but try to keep the lid as clean and dry as possible to avoid rust. Ditch it if you find any rust (or try an all-natural rust cleaner). This makes enough toothpaste to last two adults about 3 weeks, depending on how much you use.
Hints: You can simplify this by omitting the Aloe Vera and using mouthwash to flavor. However, be sure to always use equal amounts of peroxide and water, as straight peroxide will usually irritate your gums.
There ya have it. Cheap, natural, sugar-free, mildly flavored and the best thing I’ve ever encountered for bad breath. I promise it. 
Thanks for the recipe. I have been thinking of making our own toothpaste for some time. Now to convince the husband…or maybe Ill just use it for myself and the kids. Buying only one tube for him should last ages.
Interesting most of the other recipes I’ve found have baking soda, salt, vegetable glycerine and flavoring usually peppermint extract. Once we run out of our current stockpile of toothpast we are going to make our own. We’ve made our own soap and shaving cream with great results so we are looking forward to making something else to save some money.
I think the salt is added for an extra abrasive, but the BS does well in that area for me and is plenty salty for my tastes without adding any more! I had looked into the glycerin but someone had told me that it can be drying on your gums. I couldn’t confirm this either way but decided to not chance it for now. Good luck making your own!
SJS: I’d just make it and ask him to try it to give you his opinion on it. If he doesn’t like it, oh well. But it was hard for us to try the regular stuff again after this stuff because the sugary paste never seemed to get our teeth as clean. blech
[...] made adjustments to my homemade toothpaste recipe. We had used the old recipe for awhile, then switched back to Tom’s of Maine until I finally [...]
Glycerine is in all toothpastes (except for a few powdered toothpastes I’ve used). It is also in most body lotions as a softening agent. Softening is not what you want for your gums.
I’ve read quite a few recipes for toothpaste online. Baking soda by itself is excellent. Or add bit of wintergreen essential oil. The oil itself is sweet mint tasting.
Coconut oil is a good ingredient for toothpaste and I’ve heard it used for whitening teeth. Use a tablespoon or so as a mouthwash, swishing for a few minutes. Doing this regularly is supposed to remove stains.