Nature Was Doing It First: What Hydroxyapatite Teaches Us About Nature, Science and Toothpaste

If you've spotted the word hydroxyapatite on a toothpaste box recently, you're probably not alone in wondering what on earth it is.

It's not exactly a word that comes up in everyday conversation. In fact, most people have never heard of it until they start looking for a new toothpaste. What's interesting is that while the name sounds unfamiliar, hydroxyapatite itself isn't.

Hydroxyapatite is a naturally occurring mineral and one of the main building blocks found in our teeth. Long before it was being talked about in oral care, it was already part of us.

That's one of the reasons it's attracted so much attention in recent years. While hydroxyapatite may feel like a new ingredient, the reality is that scientists have been studying it for decades.

So why is everyone talking about it now?

If you've spent any time researching toothpaste, you've probably noticed hydroxyapatite popping up more and more.

Part of that is because people are becoming increasingly interested in what's actually in the products they use every day. We're reading labels, asking more questions and wanting to understand the ingredients behind the claims and we love that.

Hydroxyapatite has become part of that conversation because it's one of those ingredients that's both scientifically studied and naturally found in the body. For us, though, the most interesting thing about hydroxyapatite isn't that it's become popular. It's the story behind it.

One of the lesser-known parts of the hydroxyapatite story involves research into crystal growth during the 1960s. As scientists learned more about how minerals form in bones and teeth, interest in hydroxyapatite and its potential applications continued to grow. Decades later, hydroxyapatite would find its way into oral care products, including some of the early toothpastes developed in Japan.

It's quite a journey for something that now sits in many of our bathrooms. What we find most interesting, though, is where the story begins. Hydroxyapatite wasn't invented by scientists looking for a new toothpaste ingredient. It already existed in nature, quietly doing its job as a building block of our teeth. Science simply helped us understand it better.

At Red Seal, we've spent more than 100 years looking to nature for inspiration.

Over that time, we've watched our understanding of health, nutrition and wellbeing continue to evolve. New research emerges, new discoveries are made, and science helps us learn more about the world around us.

That's why we've always seen nature and science as partners rather than opposites.

Nature provides the starting point. Science helps us understand the why.

When we look at hydroxyapatite, we don't just see a toothpaste ingredient. We see a great example of how discovery works. A naturally occurring mineral that's been part of our teeth all along becomes the subject of decades of scientific research, opening up new ways of understanding oral care and reminding us that some of the best ingredients often start in nature.

Find our Baking Soda + Hydroxyapatite toothpaste HERE

Watch the video to see how it works with your teeth HERE