A mere 6 weeks ago I did a blog post on safe toothpaste. I just read an article (originally published in August 2014) in Bloomberg News talking about this very thing.
The article highlights one of the best known, most used toothpastes: Colgate Total. In my previous blog, I commented on the fact that triclosan is one of the toxic ten and ought NOT be in toothpaste. Well, the Bloomberg article highlights that triclosan has indeed been linked to cancer cell growth and disrupted development in animals. It seems that the FDA (Food & Drug Association...the American government agency responsible for making sure consumer products are safe before granting permission for product use) may have not done its work properly 17 years ago, when it gave the go-ahead to Colgate.
The article is lengthy. Doubt is cast on how well the supporting documents made their case for safety. New factors have come to light that cast doubt on the safety of triclosan. In addition, the 35 pages summarizing toxicology studies submitted by Colgate were held from view on the FDA. The pages were only released as a response to a lawsuit over a Freedom of Information Act request.
Triclosan is already banned in the European Union. Colgate has already voluntarily removed triclosan from its SoftSoap liquid handsoaps, as well as Palmolive dish detergent - but not from Colgate toothpaste. Colgate's main competitor, Crest toothpaste, made by Proctor and Gamble, is 100% triclosan free.
This lengthy article provides a LOT of information for thought. Personally, I would like to err on the side of caution, and avoid triclosan; especially in toothepaste. You can read the entire article here:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-08-11/in-35-pages-buried-at-fda-worries-over-colgate-s-total.html
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