CAVITY PROTECTION TOOTHPASTE vs Antiplaque Whitening Toothpaste: which is safer?

COLGATE CAVITY PROTECTION TOOTHPASTE is our pick: better on PFAS and on the overall hazard picture.

Our pick

COLGATE CAVITY PROTECTION TOOTHPASTE

Colgate

CAVITY PROTECTION TOOTHPASTE

PFAS grade

Excellent 75/100

Overall grade

Good 71/100

Verdict

Buy

Hazard flags

⚑ 1

Material

aqueous gel with fluoride, silica, sorbitol, cellulose

Confidence

78%

PossibleFluoride ingestion (systemic dose risk)

Tom's of Maine Antiplaque Whitening Toothpaste

Tom's of Maine

Antiplaque Whitening Toothpaste

PFAS grade

Excellent 75/100

Overall grade

Good 67/100

Verdict

Buy

Hazard flags

⚑ 2

Material

water-based gel with sorbitol, hydrated silica, fluoride compound

Confidence

78%

PossibleFluoride systemic toxicity (ingestion risk)

PossibleSorbitol digestive effect (minor ingestion)

Where these two actually differ

  • We flag Fluoride ingestion (systemic dose risk) on the Colgate and not on the Tom's of Maine.
  • We flag Fluoride systemic toxicity (ingestion risk) and Sorbitol digestive effect (minor ingestion) on the Tom's of Maine and not on the Colgate.
  • The Colgate is aqueous gel with fluoride, silica, sorbitol, cellulose where the Tom's of Maine is water-based gel with sorbitol, hydrated silica, fluoride compound, which is most of the difference in these two grades.
  • These two are level, close enough that price and fit should decide it rather than our grade.

Both products run through the same public rubric: materials, coatings, brand disclosure, lab findings, and recalls, plus a beyond-PFAS hazard analysis. Grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests. How grades work →

More toothpaste: see the full ranking