Whitening Toothpaste That Doesn't Test on Animals

Testing

• Although toothpaste has been used for decades, some companies continue to test on animals. Companies are constantly putting out new products, such as whitening toothpaste, and test them on animals before releasing them to the general public. For example, in 2011, the European Union's chemical testing program REACH conducted experiments on 200,000 animals for products such as toothpaste, dish soap and other household products, putting them on the skin and in the eyes of the animals to test for irritation and allergic reaction.

Brands

• According to the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), numerous companies that do not test on animals produce whitening toothpaste. The products include Burt's Bees Whitening Toothpaste, Jason PowerSmile All-Natural Whitening Toothpaste, Dr. Ken's Whitening Toothpaste and Tom's of Maine (owned by Colgate-Palmolive) Simply White Whitening Toothpaste. While Tom's is widely available, many of these products cannot be found in conventional grocery stores. Instead, look for them in health food stores, markets such as Whole Foods or local co-ops.

David Versus Goliath

• According to Pam Scheeler of Tom's of Maine, deciding not test on animals was a "David vs. Goliath" fight, as most toothpastes containing fluoride are tested on animals before they hit the shelves. In order to bypass animal testing, a company must petition the Food and Drug Administration first. To skip testing, the company had to bring in scientists to testify that they did not need the tests and also demonstrate via statistics that animal testing was not necessary. The FDA allowed the company to produce their toothpaste without data from animal testing.

Choosing the Right Product

• If buying a whitening toothpaste that has not been tested on animals is important to you, find out which other products are safe by looking on PETA's website or the product itself. Most of these products will have labels stating something such as "Not Tested On Animals" or "Cruelty Free" on the label. If this is not listed anywhere, assume the toothpaste has been used on animals. If animal testing is an important issue to you, contact the manufacturers of other whitening toothpastes and demand they stop testing on animals.