Our dental practice received a sample of the new Ollie Clean Mint toothpaste and we've decided to give it a try, use it, and review it. We kind of have to proactively try new oral health products so that we can effectively answer the barrage of questions that our patients sometimes ask us about...
Well, without further ado this is our review of the Ollie Clean Mint toothpaste.
Background
The Ollie Clean Mint toothpaste is made by Ollie. It's not their first hydroxyapatite product because the honor for that belongs to their Ollie Fresh Mint toothpaste.
However, this is their first 10% nano-hydroxyapatite toothpaste. This is important because there are a lot of hydroxyapatite toothpastes on the market but not all of them are "nano-sized" nor are they at a 10% concentration. As a matter of fact, most don't even list the concentration so you don't know how potent they actually are!
The impression to me is that this is their premier anti-cavity toothpaste that is all natural. At least that is the market segment which they'll be vying for market share.
Technical Specifications
The ollie toothpaste comes in a plastic squeezable tube with a flip cap and it comes packaged in a rectangular teal colored box.
Dispensing mechanism: The paste is dispensed via squeezing the plastic bodied tube.
Cap design: Ease to open and close flip cap design as opposed to a twist/screw cap.
Paste form: This is your traditional toothpaste and not a toothpaste tablet.
Ingredients
The ollie clean mint only has 11 ingredients in its formulation and it's about as natural as you can get.
Ingredient | Function |
|---|---|
Purified Water | Body/texture |
Calcium carbonate | Remineralizing agent Mild whitening abrasive |
Silica | Whitening abrasive |
Nano-hydroxyapatite | Remineralizing agent (anti-cavity) Anti-sensitivity |
Hydrated silica | Whitening abrasive |
Xylitol | Flavoring Mildly anti-cavity |
Peppermint oil | Flavoring |
Xanthan gum | Body/texture |
Sodium cocoyl glutamate | Coconut based foaming agent |
Potassium gluconate | Desensitizing agent |
Coconut oil | Flavoring |
Toothpaste description
Taste: To me the taste is a very mild mint with a hint of coconut. I wouldn't really say that mint is the first thing that comes to my mind. The flavor of this one is much less coconutty than the Ollie Fresh Mint toothpaste.
Foaming: This is a SLS-free toothpaste so don't expect a megaton of foaming but it does lather much better than the vast majority of non-SLS products due to the sodium cocoyl glutamate.
Color: White opaque paste
Texture: Medium bodied to thicker texture. There is some heftiness to it after you brush and let it foam up. That is compared to say a Sensodyne toothpaste which feels lighter and more watery that melts in your mouth.
Cannot detect any traces of abrasiveness while brushing.
Toothpaste Features
I would classify the Ollie clean mint toothpaste, primarily as a fluoride alternative anti-cavity toothpaste with anti-sensitivity as a close second feature. The vast majority of its effects are derived from the 10% nano hydroxyapatite in its formulation.
Anti-cavity: Studies have shown that hydroxyapatite is equally as effective as fluoride in remineralizing cavities. Due to its biomimetic nature (it's the same mineral that your tooth is made of), it naturally adheres to the enamel surface and it can insert itself into damaged tooth structure.
Anti-sensitivity: Hydroxyapatite is a natural desensitizer because it can occlude exposed dentinal tubules which lead to the tooth nerve. Essentially diets high in acids can un-occlude these tubules thus creating a direct pathway for acidic foods or cold/hot beverages to directly stimulate the pulp.
Whitening: It whitens via two mechanisms, abrasives and its natural color.
Abrasive whitening - Similar to all whitening toothpastes, the silica in its formulation helps the paste mechanically scrub off surface stains.
Natural color - The color of hydroxyapatite is fairly white so when it adheres to the enamel surface to fill in surface imperfections, it can give the appearance of whiter teeth.
Natural: For the most part, the ingredients are considered natural. There are no crazy preservatives or highly antibacterial anti-tartar agents in here. I'll just highlight two ingredients that you may find questionable or are unaware of.
Potassium gluconate sounds like a pharmaceutical product but it is commonly taken as a potassium supplement.
Hydroxyapatite is essentially tooth mineral because that's what your teeth are made of.
SLS-free: There is no sodium lauryl sulfate but they do use an alternative foaming agent called sodium cocoyl glutamate which is derived from coconuts. This is less harsh and doesn't strip out as much mouth oils when compared to SLS. It does do a good job in lathering and cleansing.
Verdict
The Ollie Cleant Mint toothpaste is a fabulous product because their formulation is on-point but the MVP is definitely the 10% nano-hydroxyapatite.
Great formulation: It's very minimalistic due to it having only 11 ingredients with one of them being water. That means you're not being bombarded with a ton of unnecessary ingredients. All of the ingredients are also all natural which is a big plus. I also do not see any contraindications with any of the ingredients which may offset one another.
Why 10% nano-hydroxyapatite is special:
Nano-hydroxyapatite is better than Micro-hydroxyapatite. Studies have found that the smaller sized hydroxyapatite particles are more effective because it can more easily embed itself within the dentinal tubules.
10% is the most potent concentration. According to some research studies which tested the remineralization potential for hydroxyapatite at various concentrations (1%, 5%, 10%, 15%) there was an improvement in greater concentration. However there was no statistical significance between 10% vs 15% so the recommendation is that it peaks out at around 10%.
Would I recommend?
I highly recommend giving the Ollie clean mint a try if you are looking for a natural fluoride alternative toothpaste that can still fight cavities and also desensitize teeth. Aside from that it can basically do what most other toothpastes do so you're really not missing out on much.
The only con that I can think of is that it is more costly than regular run of the mill toothpaste. However, all hydroxyapatite toothpastes do cost more in general and they are all within the same price range. As with all premium products you will pay a price premium but if "natural" is what you value, then this is priceless.research studies
And that concludes my review of the Ollie Clean Mint toothpaste with 10% nano-hydroxyapatite.
