Okay…so I admit it. Brushing one’s teeth with candy does sound a little off. But when you qualify the candy by what’s in it, it is not too big of a flying leap.

Case in point, xylitol candy, which is now up front and center in just about every grocery store I venture into. Xylitol is very well known to have beneficial effects on teeth, and after my Mexican dental clinic in Tijuana prescribed me a mouthwash with xylitol as its main ingredient, I decided to try brushing with a few candies I liked that had it, too.

Enter Xyla, XyloBurst and Spry Gems, all of which feature xylitol as the main sweetener, and it’s a sweetener with many benefits. Lots of cancer survivors I’ve talked to use it as one of their mainstays in addition to stevia. So why not use it for scrubbing the pearly-whites?

Considering some of the ingredients I’ve seen in “conventional” toothpastes (as well as those considered “natural” or “healthy”) – and given my knack for quick demineralization and the resulting teeth issues – I decided to give it a go. And now, four months later, I can honestly say my teeth don’t hurt as much as they used to, they are clean, not too much in the way of that scummy buildup on the surface and I don’t miss toothpaste too much at all.

My favorite candy to brush with (and this does involve chewing the candy a bit and letting it mix with saliva, then brushing) turns out to be Spry Gems, which have the added ingredient of calcium glycerophosphate, which has been studied for its anti-cavity effects.

Research on calcium glycerophosphate suggests a strong benefit in its ability to inhibit plaque formation and tooth decay (“caries”) in the mouth. An article entitled Calcium Glycerophosphate and Caries: A Review of the Literature, states:

“There is credible evidence that calcium glycerophosphate has the potential to reduce the progression of caries via all of these mechanisms if it is applied frequently and at a sufficiently high concentration.”

There is one caveat I will mention – calcium glycerophosphate, when ingested, can have the effect of lowering one’s stomach acid, and as one who has had serious problems due to low stomach acidity, I have to really watch this. Using the Gems as “mints” and ingesting them has proven not to be the best thing for me. This is why when I chew the Gems and brush with them, as with any regular toothpaste, I don’t swallow – I spit.

Still, the combination of the calcium glycerophosphate and xylitol is a good one, as long as I use it in a way that benefits me personally and not necessarily “as directed.” Even so, the Cinnamon flavored Spry Gems have become a favorite, and if I can’t find those, I sometimes make do with XyloBurst Grape or berry-flavored Xyla candies.

Variety is good, and if I find I want to skip the calcium glycerophosphate for a while, they are a fine substitute…and with these, I can swallow to my heart’s content…or not. If I’m feelin’ like I’m into that sorta thing.

The important thing is, my teeth love ’em all! And they are healthier these days than ever.

Enjoy,

Alison