Hello gals! 你們還好嗎?? 希望你們都很開心！！
So happy to be able to update again! =)
I've been having so much fun and inspiration over at TFL that my only rest times are during sleeping and eating times. Now I have about half an hour to squeeze in a blog entry before I need to run off to pack parcels for courier and get ready for puja later!
I got inspired to blog about toothpastes (yes, of all things) because as I grow up, I realised how difficult it has been for people around me to keep their teeth beautiful, healthy and strong. My teeth has been straight and neat since growing up and apart from the couple of fillings I had in my primary school days, nothing major had went wrong all these years. I count myself very lucky that I didn't have to spend thousands of dollars on my teeth. Still, at my age now, I'm not gonna take things for granted.
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| Source: Google images |
Getting the maximum value from your toothpaste. No lah, this is not what my entry is about today. I just find this photo rather amusing. =P
The only problem I had, since teenager days, is my gums would bleed when I brush my teeth. And you know what that means...reddish toothpaste foam. >_<" I didn't realise it was a problem, till the first time I visited a dentist in my twenties. Wouldn't have gone to one if it wasn't subsidised by SQ. He could tell that I had bleeding gums problem and prescribed me an antiseptic mouth wash, which was green in colour. Since then, I never had bleeding gums and my gums are a very healthy pink colour now! It used to be redder!
The dentist also reminded me to brush my gums gently as I brush my teeth, so that gums are kept clean too. Gosh, I never knew my gums need brushing too!
Since we are talking about brushing, the Husband's dentist recommended brushing the teeth in a circular motion as it removes impurities better than the up-and-down brushing. I tried that technique and my teeth looked cleaner and whiter!
Fyi, his dentist is from Sunshine Dental at Woodlands Civic Centre. The Husband is full of praise for the clinic, its staff and its equipment. On his first time there for a routine cleaning & polishing, they took a high resolution photo of his mouth insides and showed him the current condition of his teeth via the monitor. The Husband was aghast, to put it mildly. All he could mutter there and then was, "Wah, doctor, your clinic has very clear and sharp monitors." Lol.
The dentist also reminded me to brush my gums gently as I brush my teeth, so that gums are kept clean too. Gosh, I never knew my gums need brushing too!
Since we are talking about brushing, the Husband's dentist recommended brushing the teeth in a circular motion as it removes impurities better than the up-and-down brushing. I tried that technique and my teeth looked cleaner and whiter!
Fyi, his dentist is from Sunshine Dental at Woodlands Civic Centre. The Husband is full of praise for the clinic, its staff and its equipment. On his first time there for a routine cleaning & polishing, they took a high resolution photo of his mouth insides and showed him the current condition of his teeth via the monitor. The Husband was aghast, to put it mildly. All he could mutter there and then was, "Wah, doctor, your clinic has very clear and sharp monitors." Lol.
Darlie Original Strong Toothpaste
This is the first and only toothpaste I had ever used before I got married. My mum, for some reason, only buys the original Darlie and nothing else. Not Darlie with extra mint or Darlie whitening or that Darlie gel toothpaste. Just the original Darlie. She said other brands taste strange. I wonder how she knew since for 20 over years, she only buys Darlie toothpaste for us.
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| Source: Google images |
We had used Darlie for so loooooong that I even witnessed the rebranding of Darkie to Darlie in 1989. Did you know Darkie was first manufactured in Shanghai in 1933, then Hong Kong and later on, Taiwan? I didn't realise it was a original China product all these years till now! That explains why I could never find it in the supermarkets of Western countries!
After I moved in with my in-laws, they only had Colgate toothpaste. I couldn't get used to the taste and I really think its effects are not as great as Darlie. So I went out to buy a medium-sized Darlie for myself! I didn't dare to buy the jumbo tube because in the early days, I wasn't sure if my in-laws would mind me stuffing their toilet with so many of my personal toiletries when it was already very packed. Haha!
I have also discovered a new use for Darlie. It can heal burns!!!
I scalded myself once with hot soup and at wits' end, I applied a thick layer of Darlie on my burn. There was no other medical aid in sight, except a gawking Husband. To my amazement, there was no pain and the burning sensation quickly subsided! So it was no old wives tale after all to apply toothpaste on small burns! Definitely works better than running under running water or putting antiseptic cream! Best of all, as the wound heal, the burnt skin peels off finely by itself and leaves almost zero scar!
Recently I burnt my forearm again when ironing clothes for TFL shoot. I didn't even put my wound under running water (it's a temporary relief that doesn't heal the burn, imho) but instead, slap on a thick layer of Darlie. And viola, no throbbing burning feeling and by the next day, the Husband couldn't even tell I burnt myself again.
But, but, but please remember not to apply Darlie with EXTRA mint! I did that once and I was literally yelping from the 'hot' sensation on my wound from the strong mint! Not sure if other toothpastes work just as well though. I had only used Darlie on my wounds so far. =)
Theramed 2-in-1 Whitening Toothpaste + Mouthwash
A friend with super serious teeth problems introduced me to Theramed, a made-in-Germany toothpaste about 2 years ago. It has several different toothpastes but I only like the whitening one. I had never found the need to use whitening toothpaste despite being a a Coke-aholic aka serial Coke drinker. But as I hit my late twenties, my teeth were definitely not as white as before. I used to brush my teeth only once a day and that was when I wake up. After hearing my friend's woes about his teeth, I started brushing my teeth after every meal whenever possible.
My verdict: Within 2-3 weeks of using this toothpaste and only this toothpaste, I could see my teeth lighten by about 1-2 shades. Even over all these months of usage, the effect remains. I had never used it as a mouthwash, but only to brush my teeth.
Yellow teeth are just not so pretty especially when I put on deep-coloured lipstick. There was a period of time when my mum kept telling me how yellow my teeth are and I should visit a dentist in front of her friends. Gaaaah!! So embarrassing!!! But now even she noticed my teeth are whiter than before!
Yellow teeth are just not so pretty especially when I put on deep-coloured lipstick. There was a period of time when my mum kept telling me how yellow my teeth are and I should visit a dentist in front of her friends. Gaaaah!! So embarrassing!!! But now even she noticed my teeth are whiter than before!
Currently, I used this toothpaste when I wake up and sometimes after the last meal of the day, to keep my teeth white. It is available at Watsons, Guardians and Cold Storage. If you are a Watsons member, best to get it at Watsons. Sometimes there's 20% off the usual price of S$3!
The only con is this toothpaste is not great for freshening the breath. My guess is mint is not a prominent ingredient in this whitening toothpaste. Darlie is still the best for that!
Dentiste' Plus White Nighttime Herbapeutic Toothpaste
I strongly recommend this nighttime toothpaste to people with toothache problems! One of the main ingredient in this toothpaste is clove oil, which is a great remedy for toothache. But, dear, if you have a serious problem of toothaches due to more serious issues like my friend, please see a dentist. My friend has this innate and illogical fear of seeing a dentist that he rathers his teeth drop out one by one, despite our threats/coaxing/cajoling. Sigh. Don't ask me why.
So this same friend told me about this amazing herbal toothpaste. It cost S$10 for a 100g tube meant for sensitive teeth. I couldn't fathom paying so much for a toothpaste when I had been so used to using Darlie, which is at a fraction of this price! If you have non-sensitive teeth, you can get the normal range at $11.90 for 3 in a pack (2 full-sized 100g tubes, 1 60g tube) at Watsons.
My verdict: It really does what it claims! The morning breath is much better and my teeth feels much cleaner, compared to using Darlie! I was surprised at how herbal this toothpaste taste & smelt on my first usage. And I really like that!
To give you an idea of how herbal this toothpaste taste, here's some of the active ingredients:
Xylitol, Silicon Dioxide, Peppermint oil, Clove oil, Menthol, Vitamin C, Eucalyptus oil, Sage extract, Chamoile extract, Fennel extract, Glycyrrhiza extract, Cinnamon Bark extract.
My friend, who suffers from toothaches due to dying teeth and diseased gums, has his toothaches drastically reduced, after using this toothpaste!
Here's some technical information extracted from the web:
Dentiste' Premium Night Time Toothpaste, world's first and only natural night time toothpaste clinically proven to inhibit night time bacteria for fresh morning breath, features a proprietary blend of 14 kinds of premium natural extracts. The premium natural extracts are naturally anti-septic and anti-bacteria so that it provides an active protection against bacteria caused by low saliva flows and thus eliminating bad morning breath. For even better protection, we use Xylitol, a natural sweetener that cannot be digested by bacteria therefore starving and reducing their accumulation. And to make sure that no bad morning breath is left, CDX (Cyclodextrin Complex) is used to provide a passive protection against bad morning breath by effectively trapping bad breath. The Dentiste' bacteria-eliminating mechanism works so well that 97% of Dentiste' users feel the difference within just the first night of use.
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| Source: Google images |
Dentiste' Plus White Repaire Rebuild Revitalize Remineralization Toothpaste
This, my dear readers, is another truly awesome product! It can really rebuild teeth! Well, not give you a brand new tooth if your old one is dying. But it helps form new enamel around your teeth!
Due to our lifestyles, diets and aging, we face teeth erosion and abrasion problems. This toothpaste contains a breakthrough ingredient "Calcium Sodium Phosphosilicate" derived from bone re-generation technology. Imagine bone re-generation technology in your toothpaste!! Now can someone invent a way to brush this into our bones?? A 2nd chance to grow taller maybe??
This ingredient neutralizes the acidity in our mouths (so that we can stop destroying our own teeth), converts to form enamel crystals, creates new layers of enamel and fills the open tubules (pores in inner layers of teeth) in your teeth. In short, this miraculous ingredient can repair cavities in infancy stage, reduce teeth sensitivity, gingivitis (gums inflammation) and bad breath!
You know how we girls buy a moisturiser that says it can do 24352562 amazing things to your skin yet it fails? But here's a toothpaste that posts similar claims and performs to it! 一網打盡! At S$25+ for a 70g tube. Best to get at Watsons, especially when they have 20% discount. Guardians' sells it at S$29+!
It's really cool to see enamel crystals forming in the teeth! You would end up spending the next half an hour gaping into the mirror with your mouth open. But it's really amazing to see new enamel being formed!
When I was coaching my teen nieces in their Science, they were asking me why it was crucial to learn Science since they were not keen to be scientists. Now I can tell them it would help loads when you want to blog about a very useful product and you want to impress your readers by simplifying 4 paragraphs of complex scientific information into 2 short easy-to-read paragraphs. At the very least, you would be able to understand what you are blogging. Hahaha!
The toothbrush set I bring out! Got it at less than S$4 from Cheers at Changi Airport. I don't really like the toothbrush but I like the cover for the toothbrush head and the flat hard case. Used to buy the travel set from Dentiste' (nice toothbrush!), but the zip-lock case is too filmsy for my liking and gets dirtied easier.
Not sure if you notice but I really don't like squeezing toothpaste from the middle of the tube. Wait, you mean you do?? *wide-eyed*
欣雨 Xinyu
