Know the Tooth
Know the Tooth
What Does Glycerin Do For The Teeth?
by Eunice Adegbaju on Sep 16 2026
Glycerin is a humectant — it keeps toothpaste from drying out in the tube — and it mixes completely with water, so rinsing removes it. The claim that it leaves a film requiring dozens of rinses traces to a single self-published book from 1997 with no supporting data behind it.
Know the Tooth
What Do Licorice Root, Papaya, and Black Cherry Do in Toothpaste?
by Eunice Adegbaju on Sep 16 2026
Because a paste has to taste like something and hold up on a shelf, and if those jobs can be done by compounds with a plausible oral rationale rather than artificial flavors, that's a better trade.
Know the Tooth
by Eunice Adegbaju on Sep 15 2026
In simple terms, the bacteria that cause cavities can't tell xylitol from sugar. They pull it in and start processing it, then get stuck — xylitol isn't something they can use for energy. Now they have to spend energy pushing the waste back out. They end up burning fuel to take in something that feeds them nothing. Do that often enough and the population weakens.
