Photograph by Stanley Marquardt/Alamy
New research reveals that toothpaste is commonly contaminated with lead and other hazardous heavy metals. A study testing 51 brands of toothpaste found that the majority contained dangerous levels of lead, including those marketed for children and as environmentally friendly. The research, conducted by Lead Safe Mama, also discovered elevated levels of toxic substances such as arsenic, mercury, and cadmium in many toothpaste brands.
Approximately 90% of the toothpastes tested contained lead, 65% contained arsenic, nearly half had mercury, and one-third contained cadmium. Many brands were found to contain a combination of these toxins. Some of the highest levels detected exceeded federal and state limits in the US, although these limits have been criticized by public health advocates for being insufficient as no level of lead exposure is considered safe by the federal government.
Lead exposure can have serious health consequences, including cognitive damage in children, kidney impairment, heart disease, and carcinogenic effects. Tamara Rubin, founder of Lead Safe Mama, expressed her concern, stating, “It’s unconscionable – especially in 2025. What’s really interesting to me is that no one thought this was a concern.”
Rubin’s investigation was prompted by her discovery over a decade ago that a brand of toothpaste, Earthpaste, contained lead. Recent testing with an XRF lead detection tool confirmed high levels of lead in various toothpaste brands, leading to a crowdfunding effort to analyze popular brands in independent laboratories.
Among the brands found to contain these toxins were Crest, Sensodyne, Tom’s of Maine, Dr. Bronner’s, Davids, and Dr. Jen. Despite these findings, none of the companies have committed to removing lead from their products. Some have responded by sending cease-and-desist letters, while others have defended themselves by claiming that trace levels of lead are present in the environment and unavoidable.
Existing regulations on lead in children’s products vary, with some states proposing stricter limits than federal guidelines. The Federal Baby Food Safety Act of 2024 aimed for lead limits of five parts per billion (ppb) in kids’ products, while California has set a limit of two ppb for baby food but not for toothpaste.
Most toothpaste brands surpassed these limits, with some reaching levels that exceeded newly established regulations in Washington state. The FDA’s current lead limit for children is 10,000 ppb and 20,000 ppb for adults, neither of which were exceeded by the tested toothpaste brands.
The contamination in toothpaste is thought to be linked to certain additives, such as hydroxyapatite, calcium carbonate, and bentonite clay. Bentonite clay was present in toothpastes with the highest metal levels. Rubin’s investigation raises concerns about the safety of these common toothpaste ingredients.
Testing carbonate ingredients individually revealed high levels of lead and other metals, indicating they may be the source. On the other hand, some children’s toothpastes, such as Dr. Brown’s Baby Toothpaste, showed no presence of metals and did not contain the questionable ingredients.
