Here is my current recipe for DIY remineralizing toothpaste. I assembled it by picking and choosing the bits that appealed to me from several recipes posted on various blogs and from the ingredients list of at least one natural toothpaste brand.
• 3T xylitol (NOTE run through spice grinder to produce a fine powder)
• 2T calcium carbonate (NOTE look for small particle size to reduce abrasiveness – I ordered from myworldhut.com @ 2 microns)
• 2T magnesium carbonate
• 2T sodium bentonite clay (NOTE calcium bentonite also good; a bit more $)
• 2T baking soda
• 1T food grade diatomaceous earth
• 1T powdered cinnamon
• 1T powdered turmeric
• .5T sea salt (NOTE run through spice grinder to produce a fine powder)
• .5T powdered clove
• .5T powdered licorice root
• .5T fennel seed (NOTE run through spice grinder to produce a fine powder, and then through a fine strainer to remove residual gritty bits)
• 3T – 5T coconut oil (NOTE add liquefied oil incrementally and stir in until achieve desired texture)
I adjusted this recipe slightly, based on my initial results. For instance, my first batch was just slightly gritty, caused I believe from failing to strain the ground fennel seed. Also, I initially used twice as much salt, with the result being noticeably salty. I didn't mind this, but other people found it quite unsettling (why?!) that a toothpaste would be salty tasting.
This basic recipe yields maybe a half pint of brown toothpaste, which my ex-GF called "Matthew's fun mud." Would be a good name to market it to kids! It
should be shelf stable more or less indefinitely. Still, if you don't want to make a year's supply all at once, just substitute a teaspoon or even a half-teaspoon measure for my tablespoon measure.
I found it quite effective. And of course, perfectly safe to swallow. It takes some people time to break themselves from the notion that a toothpaste should foam in your mouth. But once you have, then I found this left my mouth feeling quite nice.
Probably the biggest lesson I learnt was that my basic recipe, as related above, is way too stiff! Coconut oil, of course, straddles the line between liquid and solid: it will melt at warm room temperatures, but go solid again in cool room temperatures. I expected it would be stiff during the winter, but found that my toothpaste was quite solid on all but the absolute hottest days of the year. If your house has AC, as mine does not, then it will be solid for you year round.
To fix this, I might try adding more coconut oil, and/or adding other liquid oils - sweet almond oil might be a good choice - to create a creamier mixture that can easily be scooped onto a toothbrush.
But I actually think for my next batch I will instead include no oils at all, and use it as a tooth powder. Will report back after I've used it for a while.