Why a Hong Kong dentist has some doubts about charcoal toothbrushes

Are charcoal toothbrushes better for your teeth than regular toothbrushes?

The answer: No

These are no different from regular toothbrushes, except that they have dark grey or black bristles that have been blended or infused with “activated” charcoal particles – charcoal that has been processed to open up millions of tiny pores in its atomic structure, thereby increasing the surface area available for the absorption of toxins and stains. These toothbrushes are usually marketed as providing a deeper clean than standard toothbrushes, thanks to charcoal’s natural antibacterial and deodorising properties.

The use of charcoal in dental care is not new. Your grandparents or great-grandparents might have cleaned their teeth with charcoal powder when they were younger, before conventional toothpaste became commercially available. They might have combined the charcoal with other ingredients such as salt, baking soda or clove oil to make them more pleasant to use.

Charcoal toothbrushes were not as widely available a few years ago as they are now; only a handful of holistic personal-care brands made them and you would have been hard-pressed to find them in stores. Now, some of the world’s biggest and most popular oral care companies are selling them in a bid to grab a share of the “natural” health-care market.