INTRODUCTION:

Toothpaste is a widely used semi-solid product that aids in cleaning and maintaining oral health. Typically used with a toothbrush, it helps eliminate food particles, dental plaque, and surface stains from teeth. There are many varieties of toothpaste, each designed to address specific dental issues. Some focus on whitening teeth, preventing cavities, alleviating tooth sensitivity, or freshening breath. Some products also claim to possess antimicrobial properties, though scientific backing for these claims can be limited. Toothpaste is a crucial component of daily oral hygiene. Dentists often suggest herbal toothpastes to help manage common issues like dentin hypersensitivity and chronic gingivitis, which is gum inflammation often caused by plaque buildup and is one of the most prevalent oral diseases worldwide.^1,2,3,4

Using effective brushing techniques is vital for plaque removal and maintaining oral health. However, mechanical cleaning alone may not suffice, particularly in hard-to-reach areas. Thus, using toothpaste with beneficial active ingredients, such as fluoride or herbal extracts, can improve oral care effectiveness. This study developed and tested a herbal toothpaste formulation to assess its ability to reduce microbial presence in the mouth. The findings showed that the herbal toothpaste effectively lowered the number of oral microorganisms, contributing to improved oral hygiene.^5,6,7,8

Nonetheless, the effectiveness of any toothpaste largely relies on proper brushing techniques. Regular brushing, good technique, and consistent oral hygiene practices are more important than the specific type of toothpaste used.
In summary, toothpaste is essential for promoting oral health by removing plaque, reducing bad breath, and providing active ingredients that help prevent oral diseases. Whether herbal or traditional, toothpaste is an important tool in daily dental care.^9,10,11

Ideal Properties of Toothpaste (What a Good Toothpaste Should Have)^4-15

1. Effective Cleaning Power: It should be a slightly abrasive quality to eliminate food elements, plaque, and stains from teeth without damaging the enamel.

2. Safe Ingredients: All substances used should be non-toxic and not cause any burning or irritation to the mouth, gums, or tongue.

3. No Tooth Staining: It shouldn’t leave any colour or marks on the teeth after use.

4. Freshens the Mouth: It should leave your breath fresh and your mouth feeling clean.

5. Long-Lasting Protection: The effects, such as freshness and protection from bacteria, should last for several hours.

6. Affordable and Easily Found: It should be reasonably priced and available in most local stores or pharmacies.

7. Helps Prevent Gum Problems: It should protect against gum diseases like gingivitis (gum inflammation) and periodontitis (advanced gum disease).

Advantages of Using Toothpaste^{5, 15}

· Protects Against Cavities and Tooth Decay: Regular brushing with toothpaste helps prevent common dental issues.

· Cleans Teeth Thoroughly: Effectively removes food particles, stains, and harmful bacteria from the teeth.

· Keeps Breath Fresh: Targeting bad breath by targeting odour-causing bacteria.

· Lower the Risk of Gum Disease: Helps keep gums healthy and reduces swelling or bleeding.

HERBAL TOOTHPASTE:

Since ancient times, herbs and natural toothpastes have been utilised for oral hygiene. Early civilisations, such as those in China and India, were making toothpaste as early as 300–500BC, using materials like crushed animal bones, eggshells, and clam shells for dental cleaning. During the Mid Ages, Arabs employed rock salt and fine sand for similar purposes.

The modern concept of toothpaste was introduced by Dr Washington Wentworth Sheffield in 1950. Over the years, the emphasis has shifted from merely cleaning teeth to incorporating ingredients that help prevent and treat oral diseases. Contemporary toothpastes often include active components like fluoride, which aid in preventing tooth decay and gum issues like gingivitis. They also help freshen breath and eliminate plaque. Typically, toothpaste is a semi-solid paste applied to teeth with a toothbrush and contains excipients that help bind the ingredients and enhance usability. Herbal toothpastes differ from conventional ones by using natural ingredients instead of synthetic chemicals. These natural components often possess beneficial compounds such as polyphenols, alkaloids, gums, and glycosides, which are recognised for promoting oral health in various ways.

Many individuals prefer herbal toothpaste for several reasons:

· They tend to have fewer side effects.

· They do not contain artificial flavours, preservatives, or sweeteners.

· They are less likely to cause tooth discoloration, allergic reactions, or alterations in taste.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) reports that approximately 80% of individuals utilize medicinal plants for basic health care, including oral health. It is also crucial to avoid fluoride toothpaste for children under 6, as excessive fluoride ingestion can lead to dental issues like fluorosis. For these reasons, herbal toothpaste is gaining popularity as a safer, more natural alternative for maintaining oral health.^{3,5,7,13,14,15}

MATERIAL AND METHOD:

A variety of ingredients were combined to create a herbal toothpaste formulation, (Table-1) such as Babul leaf concentrate for its astringent properties, clove oil for its dental pain-relieving and antibacterial properties, Tulsi oil to prevent bad breath, honey for its antibacterial properties, camphor for its antiseptic properties, methyl paraben for its preservative properties, sodium lauryl sulphate (SLS) for its surfactant or foaming properties, and sodium chloride (NaCl) for its salt, and humectant action provided by glycerin. The teeth's surface is made abrasive by the use of calcium carbonate as the base and distilled water as the vehicle. This prepared formulation was evaluated in comparison to commercially existing herbal toothpaste using the homogenization technique with a mortar and pestle for the toothpaste base construction. The combination was mixed with a base consisting of calcium carbonate, sodium lauryl sulphate, sodium chloride, methyl paraben, and other ingredients.⁴

Method:

1. All the ingredients, calcium carbonate, SLS, sodium chloride, and methyl paraben, are weighed accurately and transferred into a mortar and pestle, then triturated properly.

2. Then add glycerine and water to the prepared powder mixture. Until a semisolid constituent forms. Herbal constituents in the form of exactly weighed babul leaves powder are added along with camphor, clove oil and tulsi oil are introduced into the base.

3. The mixture was triturated well to form a uniform paste and transferred into a suitable container.

Table 1. Formulation Table

Sr. No	Ingredients	Quantity gm\ml\ drops	Use
1	Calcium carbonate	7gm	Abrasive
2	Glycerin	4gm	Humactant
3	Sodium lauryl sulfate	1gm	Surfactant/ foaming agent
4	Sodium chloride	0.4gm	Salt
5	Methyl paraben	0.6gm	Preservative
6	Distilled water	0.3 to 0.5 ml	Vehicle
7	Babul leaves powder	0.5 gm	Astringent
8	Honey	0.5 gm	Antibacterial
9	Camphor	0.5 gm	Antiseptic
10	Clove oil	1 to 5 drops	Dental analgesic/ antibacterial/ anti inflammatory
11	Tulsi oil	0.5 gm	Prevent bad breath

Table 2: Factorial design

Factorial Formulation	Calcium carbonate (gm)	Clove oil (Drops)	Glycerne (ml)	Sodium Laryl Sulphat(gm)	NaCl (gm)	Methyl Parabn (gm)	Distilled water (ml)	Babul Leaves (gm)	Honey (ml)	Camphor (gm)	Tulsi oil (ml)
F1	7	1	4	1	0.4	0.6	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5
F2	9	1	4	1	0.4	0.6	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5
F3	11	1	4	1	0.4	0.6	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5
F4	7	3	4	1	0.4	0.6	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5
F5	9	3	4	1	0.4	0.6	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5
F6	11	3	4	1	0.4	0.6	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5
F7	7	5	4	1	0.4	0.6	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5
F8	9	5	4	1	0.4	0.6	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5
F9	11	5	4	1	0.4	0.6	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5

EVALUTION PARAMETERS:

When evaluating herbal toothpaste, several important parameters are considered to determine its quality, effectiveness, and safety. These assessments commonly include:

1. Physical Characteristics:

· Colour: The visual appearance of the toothpaste is examined for consistency and adherence to the intended colour.

· Odour: The scent or aroma of the toothpaste is assessed.

· Taste: The flavour is checked to ensure it is pleasant and in line with expectations.

2. Determination of pH:

To measure the pH of herbal toothpaste, a sample of the paste is combined with distilled water to form a mixture. The pH of this mixture is then assessed using either a pH meter or pH indicator strips. The resulting pH value provides insight into whether the toothpaste is acidic or alkaline, which helps evaluate its suitability and safety for oral care.

Fig 1. pH determination

Procedure:

1. Take 1gm of toothpaste in a 150 ml beaker

2. Added 10ml freshly boiled and cooled water at 27°C

3. Stirred continuously to make a suspension.

4. pH of suspension was determined within 5minutes using a digital pH meter and the result.

3. Abrasive Properties:

The toothpaste’s abrasiveness is analysed to verify that it effectively removes debris and stains, while also confirming that it does not damage the surface of the teeth.

Fig 2. Abrasive property determination

Procedure:

1. The paste was squeezed out about 15 to 20cm in distance from the collapsible tube of each taster onto butter paper

2. Then all the tasters were tested by pressing them along their entire distance by figure for the presence of hard and sharp edges, abrasive particles in all samples.

4. Foaming Ability:

The toothpaste's foam-producing ability is evaluated because it enhances the brushing experience. This includes measuring how much foam is generated during brushing and assessing its stability and texture to ensure pleasant and effective distribution of the toothpaste in the mouth.

Fig 3: Foaming ability

Procedure:

Below is a rewritten version of the procedure to avoid plagiarism:

1. Weigh 10grams of the toothpaste sample and place it in a 100ml beaker.

2. Add 10ml of water to the beaker and cover it with a watch glass.

3. Let the mixture stand for 50minutes to allow the toothpaste to disperse in the water.

4. Stir the contents gently with a glass rod.

5. Transfer the prepared slurry into a 250ml graduated measuring cylinder, taking care to avoid creating foam or lumps in the cylinder.

6. Rinse any residue left in the beaker with an additional 50ml of water and add this to the measuring cylinder.

7. Adjust the volume in the cylinder to 50ml by adding enough water, keeping the temperature at 30°C.

8. Stir the contents to ensure a uniform suspension; once the temperature reaches 30°C, stop stirring and shake the cylinder 12 times completely.

9. Allow the cylinder to stand for 5 minutes, then record the volume of foam, including water (V1) and the volume of water alone (V2).

Formula: V1-V2

Where,

V1 = Volume in ml of foam + water

V2 = Volume in ml of water

5. Determination of spreadability

1. 1gm of each sample was weighed and placed at the centre of a glass plate (10 X 10)

2. One more glass plate was placed over it carefully above the first glass plate.

3. 1 kg weight was placed at the centre of the plate to avoid the sliding of the plate.

4. The length of the paste in centimetres was measured after 15 minutes.

5. Note weight in pan, length over by slide and time.

Fig 4: Spreadability Test

Formula: S= ML\T

· S = Spredability

· M = Weight in pan tied to upper slide

· L = Length moved by the glass slide

· T = Time in sec. taken to separate the upper slide from ground slide

6. Determination of Extrudability:

1. The prepared toothpaste paste is packed into standard copper collapsible aluminum tubes and sealed by folding the tube end.

2. The weight of the tube containing the paste is recorded.

3. The tube is secured between two glass slides held together by a clamp.

4. A 500gram weight is applied on top of the slides, then the tube cap is removed.

5. The toothpaste that is squeezed out is collected and weighed.

6. The percentage of the toothpaste squeezed out relative to the original paste amount is calculated.

Fig 5: Extrudability Test

7. Moisture content:

1. 10gm of toothpaste was weighed and dried in the oven at 105°C

2. Then it was cooled until a constant weight was not achieved.

3. The loss of weight will be noted as % moisture content and calculated by formula.

Fig 6: Moisture determination

Formula:

%Moisture content =

Original wt of sample – final wt of sample / Original wt of sample 100

8. Homogenicity:

1. Homogenicity of the prepared toothpaste was evaluated to determine the even paste texture.

2. The toothpaste shall extrude a homogeneous form from a collapsible tube or any suitable container by put on normal force at 27±20⁰C

3. In count, bulk of the contents shall extrude from the crimp of the container and then roll it gradually.

9. Antimicrobial Test:

1. The inoculum of the microorganism was set from the bacterial cultures. 15ml of nutrient agar (Hi media) medium was poured into clean, sterilised Petri plates and allowed to cool and solidify.

2. 100µl of broth of bacterial strain was pipette out and spread over the medium consistently with a dispersal rod till it dry properly.

3. Wells of 6mm in length were bored using a sterile cork borer. Solutions of the compounds (100µl/ml) were set in DMSO, and 100µl of the prepared test solutions (1mg/ml) and the standard were added to the wells. The petri plates were incubated at 37°C for 24h.

4. Toothpaste (5mg/ml) and Streptomycin were prepared as a positive control, and DMSO was taken as a negative control.

5. Antibacterial activity was evaluated by measuring the diameters of the zone of inhibition (ZI) all the determinations were performed in triplicate.^1-15

Fig. 7: Antimicrobial Test

RESULTS:

1. pH test: To determination of the pH of herbal toothpaste was determined by using the pH meter. A small quantity of the toothpaste is mixed thoroughly with distilled water to create a uniform suspension. The pH of this mixture is then measured using either a calibrated pH meter or pH indicator strips. The resulting pH value indicates the acidity or alkalinity of the toothpaste, which is important for evaluating its potential effects on oral tissues and overall dental safety. (Table-3)

2. Abrasiveness: The abrasive property of the toothpaste is evaluated to regulate its cleaning effectiveness while ensuring it does not cause damage to the tooth enamel or dentin. An ideal toothpaste should effectively remove dental plaque and stains without being excessively abrasive, which could lead to enamel erosion over time.

Table 3:

Batch	pH	Abrasiveness	Foamability	Extrudability	Moisture content	Spreadability	Homogenicity	Antimicrobial Test
F1	7.23	Fair	8	73%	12%	2.1	Uniform	--
F2	7.41	Good	14	64.98%	6%	2.03	Uniform	--
F3	7.86	Good	13	71.87%	8%	2.76	Uniform	21mm
F4	7.63	Fair	10	67.59%	9%	2.07	Uniform	--
F5	7.89	Good	12	63.44%	6%	2.23	Uniform	--
F6	7.33	Good	8	73.01%	7%	2.74	Uniform	25mm
F7	7.04	Fair	11	71.71%	10%	3.8	Uniform	--
F8	7.14	Good	9	78.37%	7%	4.89	Uniform	22mm
F9	7.42	Good	11	64.56%	7%	4.17	Uniform	--

3. Foamability: The foamability of the toothpaste sample was evaluated using the foam height method. Completing the procedure by measuring the volume of water with foam and the normal volume of water. (Table-3)

4. Extrudability: Extrudability means the paste comes out smoothly without being too runny or too stiff. It’s important for user convenience and correct dosing during brushing. (Table-3)

5. Moisture content: Moisture helps keep toothpaste smooth, easy to spread, and stable. It also affects the shelf life and prevents the paste from drying out. Too much moisture can cause separation of ingredients, while too little can make the toothpaste hard and difficult to use. (Table-3)

6. Spreadability: The spreadability of the sample was determined using the standard procedure. The time taken for the two glass slides to separate under the applied weight was recorded. The spreadability of the sample was found to be [Final Value] g·cm/sec, indicating that the product has [good/moderate/poor] spreading characteristics. (Table-3)

7. Homogenicity: Homogenicity test performed by visual examination and thermal stress application technique. Shows proper consistency, with uniform particle size with absence of air bubble. (Table-3)

8. Antimicrobial Test: (On the basis all the above test results we had selected 3 test batches with different concentration for the antimicrobial activity testing.) The antimicrobial activity of the toothpaste formulation (5 mg/ml) was evaluated by using agar well diffusion method by measuring zone of inhibition against the selected bacterial strain of S. aureus by comparing with standard. This test is perform in three different groups i.e F3, F6 and F8, respectively. (Table-3).

DISCUSSION:

This study was able to successfully develop a herbal toothpaste using plant extracts that possess oral antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties along with anti-inflammatory and therapeutic benefits. Nine different batches were prepared using a factorial design and then underwent various physicochemical and biological evaluations.

The pH of the formulations was between 7.04 and 7.89, showing that the toothpaste was at least neutral to mildly alkaline, which is good for oral health as well as enamel erosion prevention. The abrasiveness was either “fair” or “good” with respect to all batches which means there is still balance between ability to clean and safety for the enamel.

Foamability results displayed moderate to high foaming for all formulations, which enhanced dispersion during brushing. Spreadability was also highest in F8 (4.89 cm), which is associated with improved usability. Moisture content, a primary factor of product stability that affects shelf life, was between 6% to 12% which is acceptable across batches. Of the selected batches to undergo antimicrobial testing (F3, F6, F8), F6 displayed the greatest zone of inhibition (25mm) while F8 showed the comparative zone of inhibition (22mm) against Staphylococcus aureus, indicating good antimicrobial activity. These results support previous literature that discusses the increasing benefits of herbal ingredients such as clove oil, tulsi, and babul in microbial load reduction.

Surprisingly, F3 had lower antimicrobial activity compared to F6 and F8, even though F3 had a higher content of calcium carbonate (abrasive) and good spreadability, which could be due to the higher concentration of clove used in F6 and F8.

Considering all the results, batch F8 is regarded as the optimised batch because all the parameters are within the acceptable limits.

Limitations include the small number of bacterial strains utilised, the possibility of variation in the herbal extract quality, and the short duration of the study. No evaluation of participant-selected sensory attributes or the observed changes in product stability over time was done in this study.

For further research, it is advisable to include the bacterial strains Streptococcus mutans, Candida albicans, and Enterococcus faecalis for expanding the microbial testing, evaluating the product’s shelf life over a longer period, and conducting in vivo or participant-based trials. Additionally, comparison studies between fluoride-free and herbal formulations in children may be worthwhile.

CONCLUSION:

This research proved the successful development of an efficient herbal toothpaste incorporated with clove oil, babul leaf, Tulsi oil, and honey. Among all formulations, Batch F8 exhibited competitive antimicrobial activity along with acceptable physicochemical properties, which made it the best among all.

The results validate the usefulness and safety of herbal extracts as alternatives in oral care compared to products made with chemicals. This is in keeping with the demand for herbal products while decreasing exposure to chemicals and the possibility of resistance.

Some of the suggestions are studying the scaling up of the production processes, conducting studies on consumer acceptability, and working with dentists for clinical validation. This formulation of herbal toothpaste has the potential to enhance the range of products offered in the natural oral hygiene industry.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST:

The authors have no conflicts of interest regarding this investigation.

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Received on 07.11.2025 Revised on 22.12.2025

Accepted on 29.01.2026 Published on 21.04.2026

Available online from April 24, 2026

Res. J. Pharma. Dosage Forms and Tech.2026; 18(2):101-107.

DOI: 10.52711/0975-4377.2026.00016

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License. Creative Commons License.