Greening your Grin - some reviews to help you on your way

Last month I was the person who posted the most comments on the All Natural Me, http://allnaturalme.com, which meant I won a prize! Yay!! The prize I won was a Source toothbrush from Radius. Here is the link: http://www.radiustoothbrush.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=16
So, why is this toothbrush so wonderfully groovy?? I'm going to be nice and lazy here and just quote directly from their site:

Features:
*2 New SOURCE Styles includes Recycled US Dollar Bills from Unites States Mint and Recyled Flax from Linen production.
*93% Recycled Material - 47% Renewable Resource.
*Replaceable Heads + Wooden Handle = Only 7% of toothbrush wasted as compared to 100% of ordinary toothbrushes.
*Wooden Handle is molded from recycled wood bio-plastic resulting in 100% renewable resource.
*New lightweight unbreakable replacement heads made from surgical-grade nylon.
*Dramatically increases softness and efficacy of brushing with 65% more bristle tufts than ordinary toothbrush.
*Reversible for both Right or Left handed brushing - Available in soft or medium bristles.
*Handle lasts forever. Simply throw the heads away!

I have to admit, I've been using this toothbrush for a while ~ before I won a new one. I had been wanting a more eco-friendly toothbrush and found this one. It took a little bit to get used to holding it, the shape is just really different from your usual toothbrushes. The right hand/left hand brushing is just really cool and really comfortable. I don't think I could go back to the old design now. The shape of the heads reminds me of a leaf. I didn't think this would make a difference, but it really did. It took my gums a day or two to get used to the attention they were receiving. Another admission: I didn't realize until now that my gums were lacking attention!! Yikes. My first brush is the one pictured above, made from flax - recycled flax from linen production. The new one is made from old currency. Ok .. that is just cool. How many times do you get to use something that is made from money??? Better than just burning it, but a similar "too cool" feeling.
The currency brush is blackish-green in color. I gave this one to Justin. Justin is somewhat a typical guy in his distrust of changing up things. He's actually getting used to me throwing new things at him, but I was still wary of his reaction to the Source toothbrush. His words about it? "It's fine." Typical. A man of many words he isn't. When I asked a little bit more (as I tend to do) he did comment on the shape of the handle. But he seems to like that. I asked about the leaf head-shape and got a simple response of that he indeed did notice it brushed his gums.
He had been using a Preserve toothbrush, and I only feel it fair to note it now. It's an eco-friendly model too, as it is also known as “the toothbrush made from yogurt cups.” He's really liked it, and we like it that they will take it back and re-recycle it. If you want to check out their brushes, here is the link: http://preserveproducts.com/products/toothbrush.html. Preserve sells toothbrushes along with razors, tableware, and a big ole myriad of kitchen accessories. We're planning on picking up some of their food storage bowls here soon. They also are now collecting clean, used #5 plastics for recycling through their Gimme 5 campaign. LOVIN' that!! (http://preserveproducts.com/gimme5/)
To round out the whole green-mouth experience, we've been using Toms of Maine toothpaste. We'd been using their cinnamon & clove brand and really liked it. I won't go on about Tom's too much because they've been around long enough that I figure you already know about them. If not check them out: we're also using their mouth-rinse (not bad, a little odd taste, and changes color over time, that is strange) & their deoderant (not as strong as the commercial brands, but natural and safer to use ~ if at first one doesn't work for you, try another one .. this seems to have worked for me). The only complaint I would have at ALL about Tom's of Maine is about their kid's toothpaste. Ours is strawberry, the kids love it, it works great. Their toothpastes come in aluminum tubes though. We have two boys ... the tube popped holes before it was empty. We now keep it up high and out of reach (a feat in and of itself with our boys!), and viola, problem solved.
However, when we last needed toothpaste we spotted a brand on sale (gotta watch the bottom line!) and have switched to try it: Jason's Sea Fresh Plus CoQ10 Gel Toothpaste. The tag-line: Contains CoQ10 for gum support and periodontal protection. Biologically Active Blue-Green Algae, Sea Salts and Minerals help strengthen gums and teeth while DeepSea Spearmint blasts away bad breath! We've been really pleased with this toothepaste as well. The only "funny" thing about it is this: rinsing is really a pain!! I am not a sloppy toothbrusher, but when I rinse I somehow wind up with toothepaste on my chin. Not really a big deal, but kinda funny and worth mentioning. I am digging the spearminty blasts though, but that is just a personal taste.
In honor of being frugal and trying to be green I've even made my own toothepaste before. This one was a little too homemade for our tastes, particularly Justin who tried it once and swore he would never do it again! There are recipes out there, and I've known people to make their own and be happy with it. I give them props for that, and somewhere in me I know that if I gave it the "ole college try," I could probably make a better batch. However, I also know my husband. He puts up with my "I can make it myself" on most things and doesn't complain (even likes it!), so when he says "No" pretty firmly, I figure it is worth it to find something he likes.
SO .. if you haven't already greened up your grin some, I hope this helps start you on the path. One big thing I will tell you -- when I ran out of toothpaste, before I bought the Jason's, I did my scrounging around for a travel-size tube I knew had to be packed away. It was. Crest's Kids Sparkling Flouride something-or-other. The flavor tasted like Bubble Yum, but was called "Sparkling Fun". DAMN was it SUGARY!!!!! YUCK!! Seriously, I felt like I was brushing my teeth with candy, and had damaged them more by putting that stuff on than helped them!!!! Horrifying to think I once, at some point in time, used that stuff on my kids' teeth. I seriously hope and pray that they, if they ever try commercial brands when they're older, will have a similar reaction.
You know what they say "Once you go Green..." ~ it is true. Cost-wise, the toothpastes are more expensive, I can't deny that. But worth every scent, and coupons are usually easy to find. Toothbrush wise ... any extra cost is far outweighed (whether you go with Radius' Source or something from Preserve) by the eco-benefits. Only having to buy new heads is nice. Being able to send in the old toothbrush is nice.
Suddenly, getting new toothbrushes in my Christmas stocking seems pretty damn cool. Maybe I'll just have to buy a whole collection to hand out as gifts for everyone else.