On 20 August, my son turned 3.  It was a time when he quite understand the meaning of birthdays so we decided that we would give him a big party.  We had in mind to invite most of the friends our family personally know - both adults and children. I had sent out the invites via email two months in advance and planned the party over the following weeks to avoid the last minute rush.

Some of the great places to get birthday stuff were Spotlight, The Warehouse, $2 shops and even Safeway supermarket.  With the ample time I had, I was able to window shop at many places, especially on my son's childcare days.  I bought some really cool birthday-themed disposable cutlery and serviettes at Safeway and they were on more than 50% discount.  Great stuff! At Spotlight, there was a wide variety of cutlery of different themes such as Cars, Dora the Explorer, Barbie, Thomas the Tank..etc but they were really expensive.  I was glad to find 50 cents loot bags, plastic table sheet, lovely candles, birthday banner etc on clearance sale!  They were birthday-themed and yet beautiful enough.  What a great saving!  The Warehouse was a great place to buy presents for the children's games.  They have colouring books, colour pencils, crayons, Transformers toys, Hotwheel cars...etc..

It was a most excellent thing to have friends who extended their help with putting this party together.  Two of them with the flair in decor came the day before the party to put up balloons, banner and streamers.  Another came to help with food preparation - cutting up corns, pumpkin, sweet potatoes and wrapping up with foil for baking the next day.  And another who came with a digital SLR to help capture candid moments.  As the host, it is impossible to do that and it was fantastic having a helpful cameraman.  On the actual day, some friends helped with the actual cooking as well while everybody just got to know everybody! The atmosphere was wonderful.

Food list? Parties usually have really unhealthy foods but it does not have to be if we were to do it ourselves - baked corn, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, quality fish fingers are great for both the very young and old - chicken bbq chops and pork chops marinated overnight were great and easy to prepare.  Sausages are great easy food too!  Fruits are always a great choice! Rockmelons, oranges, pineapples and grapes.  I think it is a great idea to trim the cleaned grapes into tiny bunches before the party.  It makes it easier for guests to eat and this does not damage the grapes.  Guests just need to take the tiny bunches instead of trying to pluck them off the main big bunches themselves.  Fried noodles with sliced marinated chicken breasts, choy sum, fish cake, sliced champignons, onions and oyster sauce is fast, easy to prepare and yummy.  That serves as a main meal too.  Cuttlefish and Prawn balls are popular with everybody.  Just deep fry them.  Wiped out in a minute!  Of course, we had all sort of lollies and chocolate bars and potato chips.  Rock Deli was cool!  Healthier choice as the brand promotes - baked not fried - using sunflower oil.

Well, for the cake, I know there are very expensive ones out there.  We just got one blackforest torte from The Cheesecake shop and paid a little extra to put a car image on it.  Our son is currently a car fanatic.  He was so pleased to see the Ford Falcon on the cake! www.cheesecakeshop.com

And for the games, I surfed the net for some.  Wow, it was not easy to find games for young ones such as 2 or 3 as they have limited understanding about games.  It was wonderful that the mums who came helped out the younger ones during the games.  Passing the parcel, Treasure hunt for lollies, Shrinking Island, Pinning the Donkey's Tail were all successful!  However, I did a car instead of a donkey so the children could pin a wheel instead of a tail.  Just needed some coloured paper to do them.  Getting the pressies wrapped up early, indicating gender and age on them were really helpful.  You wouldnt want to give a 2-year-old something he doesnt know how to use or eat yet.  And you wouldnt want to give a 7-year-old something too kiddo that he/she doesnt need anymore.  Delegating a gamesperson before the party to do the games was a great idea too.  As for music for the games, the library was a great place to get them.  The adults were a wonderful audience laughing their hearts out watching the children play their games.

We started the party at noon and it lasted for 3 hours as we planned.  Everything went as smoothly as was planned.  Planning and shopping in advance certainly was a good decision.  And delegation and getting help were important too.  The guests had a good time and our family had a wonderful time as well.  It was a party everybody enjoyed.

We were out for dinner & window-shopping with friends one evening and happened to be just chatting right outside a pharmacy. My two-year-old boy was intrigued by a colourful display of perfume & cologne bottles (testers and packaged boxes) displayed at an area right outside the pharmacy.  Surprisingly, all the bottles were within his reach even though he is just a mere 96cm tall. In fact, they were just right in front of him and he innocently took hold of one bottle while calling out 'Mummy,bottles!'  I quickly moved to him with the intention of getting the bottle out of his hand because I was concerned that he might drop it and shatter the glass bottle of perfume. To my horror, he accidentally squirt one spray right into his eye. He screamed loudly and cried. It all happened so lightning fast though I was just a few steps away from him!! I had to quickly rub his eye and hoped that tears will help wash out the perfume from his eye. The toilet was far away for me to reach in time. Fortunately, he recovered from the incident but not without a slightly red eye which stayed throughout the whole evening.

I just hope parents who read this will learn a lesson from me. Sometimes, we may not foresee a possibly dangerous situation when we are out and about. Beware of those tester bottles easily within our kids' reach when we go shopping at pharmacys or departmental stores. Having one spray of that perfume/cologne into the eye is worse than breaking the bottle...

 

Shampoos are an essential part of our cleaning routine. But have you ever notice what goes into them to maintain our crowning glory? A typical supermarket shampoo contains the following ingredients :

Water, sodium C12-13 pareth sulfate, cocamidopropyl betaine, dimethiconol, dimethiconol/silsequioxane copolymer, laureth-23, TEA-dodecylbenzenesulfonate, guar hydroxypropyltrimonium chloride, cucumis sativus (cucumber fruit extract), propylene glycol, metha-aquatica leat extract, sodium chloride, disodium EDTA, DMDM hydantoin, PPG-26, fragrance(synthetic).

You can probably find a few ingredients which are natural (in bold) but found at the end of the ingredient list. The product mainly contains synthetic chemicals including silicone derivatives, fragrance and preservatives.

Let us look at the ingredients of a reputable 'Made in USA' shampoo which is sold only in salons for about $20.

Water, sodium laureth sulfate, cocamide DEA, cocamidopropyl betaine, matricaria extract, nettle extract, rosermary extract, quillaja saponaria extract, tocopheryl acetate, keratin amino acids, panthenol, avocado oil, allantoin, soybean sterol, honey, ceramide 3, wheat flour lipids, polyquaternium-10, tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate, alpha-glucan oligosaccharide, butyl methoxydibenzoylmethane, ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate, styrene/mthacrylic acid/itaconic acid polymer, myristic acid, palmitic acid, stearic acid, magnesium citrate, sodium chloride, polyglyceryl-3 distearate, polysorbate 60, guar hydroxypropyltrimonium chloride, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylsothiazolinone, citric acid, propylene glycol, propylparaben, methylparaben, fragrance (synthetic).

You find a few truly natural and wholesome ingredients (in bold) in larger concentrations in this formulation but loads and loads of synthetic chemicals and preservatives. I find at least four in the product above. I have used the above product for years without knowing what goes inside.

Finally, let us look at the organic shampoo which I am currently using :

Organic aloe vera leaf juice, coco polyglucose, Yucca Schidigera extract, organic rice bran extract, non-GMO lecithin, d-panthenol (pro-vit 5), sunflower oil, organic avocado fruit oil, non-GMO xanthan gum, organic lime essential oil, proprietry blend of essential oils (natural parfum), citric acid, organic horsetail extract, organic nettle extract, organic burdock extract, organic rosemary extract, organic sage extract.

I love this Desert Flower Shampoo for several reasons : It is completely safe. It uses natural ingredients. It uses organic ingredients certified to food standards by reputable certification body Australian Certified Organic. This shampoo is meant for normal to dry hair and is ultra mild for daily use. It is suitable for children and babies too. It contains Yucca juice and coco polyglucose which gently cleanse the hair.

My husband has oilier hair and he uses Miessence Lemon Myrtle shampoo. He also loves the invigorating aroma of organic lemon. It has the following ingredients :

Organic aloe vera leaf juice, coco polyglucose, d-panthenol (pro-vit 5), proprietry blend of essential oils (natural parfum), non-gmo xanthan gum, organic lemon myrtle essential oil, citric acid, organic horsetail extract, organic nettle extract, organic burdock extract, organic rosemary extract, organic sage extract.

My little boy uses Miessence Desert Flower Shampoo. However, I love to also use Aromababy's Pure Hair Cleanse to wash his hair. I can be rest assured of its safe and simple ingredients used :

Purified Water, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Polysorbate 20, Xanthan Gum, Orange Sweet Essential Oil, Geranium Bourbon Essential Oil, Hydroxymethylglycinate.
                        
Has anyone tried these great shampoos before?

I am back in Singapore having my one month holidays. Just sent all my son's Avent polycarbonate milk bottles for recycling as there is a campaign here. Went shopping on Sunday and browsed at a few brands of milk bottles and toddler straw cups. Finally bought this brand - Aprica. It is a Japanese brand. Even the Royal Family in Japan uses this brand. I can see from Aprica's thick childcare handbook/catalogue that a lot of work has been put in for this area and I certainly can put my trust in their product range. (My son is also currently using their stroller which is ultra light-weight for somebody not very strong like me).

The milk bottles and toddler straw cups are made of polypropylene which is a safe plastic that does not leak Bisphenol-A. Not sure if Aprica is available in most countries though. I know they are at least in USA, Italy, Taiwan, Japan and Singapore. Aprica's bottles are compatible with Dr Brown's teats as both brands worked together in a partnership before.

Just curious if anybody else besides me used these bottles before...Anyone??

Last Saturday, I went to the Pregnancy Babies & Mothers Expo and bought a toddler cup for my boy. It is called the Kala's Downunder Magic Cup. We came home, washed it up and let my son try it. I really like it very much for these big reasons :

• It has a total of four parts only - cup with large handles, lid which is screw-on to cup, spout which is screw-on to lid and a dust cover. Some cups come with many spare-parts which makes assembing a chore, and some spare-parts are really tough to reach for proper cleaning.
• Because the parts are screw ons, the cup is totally spill-proof no matter how you shake it or turn it upside down.
• The cup is made of PP (polypropylene) (#5) and the spout is made of HDPE (High Density Polyethylene) (#2). Completely safe of BPA.
• The spout comes with a valve. Liquids only come out if there is suction. The valve is very easy to clean both from the inside or outside of the spout. So, this cup has the most hygenic valve system.
• The spout is round and the lips seal around it nicely. The design also somehow prevents my son from trying to chew it.
• It has large handles for easy grip, even for the most slippery fingers after handling finger foods!
• It comes in various colours (for both boys and girls) with interchangeable mix 'n' match spouts. The pigments used in the cup's manufacturing contain no heavy metals and conform to JHOSPA food contact standards.
• It is lightweight even when full.
• It come with a waterproof label that I can write my boy's name onto, which is wonderful especially for childcare use (you won't lose it or mix it up with others).
• Best of all, it is completely Australian-made and owned.

Some small reasons which are great to have :

• The spout fits any drink bottle with an opening diameter of 28mm.
• The cup and lid are dishwasher-safe.

Some other points to note :

• This cup cannot be microwaved.
• This cup is not meant for hot or fizzy drinks.
• This cup cannot be sterilised (anyway, who would sterilize a toddler's cup?)
• The cups come in 200ml and 300ml.

Check out http://www.kalaslittlestars.com/

I have also tried using Avent's toddler's spouts on its milk bottles for Samuel. However, I did not find it very good. The green spout comes with a silicon piece. While the silicon piece is easy to clean, the interior of the spout is hard to reach. I did not find that very hygenic. Also, occasionally, the spout does leak. You have to really fit and press the spout into the screw cap and check! Another bad thing about this spout is that my son tends to chew it a lot since it is shaped in a flat way. It makes it rather tempting for him to chew on it while drinking. The spout becomes very worn-out and rough after all the chewing.

So if there is any mum who is having a headache like me trying to find a safe and efficient toddler cup, you may like to try Kala's.

 

One of my friends once made a comment that even though her kids are now older and do not need to constantly use wet wipes, that is one product that has since stayed with her family. Wet wipes are indeed a great invention. I wonder what parents use in olden days to clean up their kids' mess, be it on the face or bottom. They probably used the good old handkerchief. And then upgraded to tissue paper. And now, wet wipes. It cleans better than handkerchiefs or tissue paper because it is wet. It does not tear easily. And it is also disposable and comes in such handy packs.

I used a lot of wet wipes on my son. It was so convenient and did a wonderful job. It was only when I hired a maid that I reduced the usage of wet wipes. That was because my maid would take my son to the bathroom to wash his bottom after his poop. When I was the sole caregiver for my son, I could not afford the time and naturally, I resorted to wet wipes. I practically used wet wipes everywhere... on my boy, on his clothes, on his toys, on the furniture, even on my dog! I would say that I have used wet wipes mindlessly, because I have never ever studied what's in them.

Here are the ingredients of some common household brands :

BRAND ONE :

PURIFIED WATER, PROPYLENE GLYCOL, AQUA & SODIUM LAUROYL SARCOSINATE, SODIUM LACTATE, PEG-40 HYDROGENATED CASTOR OIL, PEG-45 PALM KERNEL GLYCERIDES, ALOE VERA, PPG-5 CETETH-20, CETYL PYRIDINIUM CHLORIDE, DISODIUM EDTA, MENTHOL CYCLODEXTRIN COMPLEX, LACTIC ACID, AQUA & DIMETHICONE, PHENOXYEHTANOL, METHYL-, BUTYL-, ETHYL-, PROPYL-PARABEN, FRAGRANCE.

Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate is a detergent that is considered mild. Ceteth-20 can be potentially contaminated with ethylene oxide and 1,4 dioxane. There are five preservatives and there is artificial fragrance.

BRAND TWO :

PROPYLENE GLYCOL, PHENOXYETHANOL, SODIUM LACTATE, METHYLPARABEN, PEG-60 HYDROGENATED CASTOR OIL, CETYLPYRIDINIUM CHLORIDE, ETIDRONIC ACID, TETRASODIUM ETIDRONATE, JOJOBA ALCOHOL(NATURALLY OCCURRING), PPG-8-CETETH-20, WATER.

This one has phenoxyethanol, a preservative, right in the top thirds of the ingredient list. Then after that methylparaben soon after. Steer clear!

BRAND THREE:

WATER, MINERAL OIL, C11-13 ISOPARAFFIN, POLYSORBATE-20, PHENOXYETHANOL, PROPYLENE GLYCOL, GLYCERYL STEARATE, PEG-30 STEARATE, STEARETH-10, CITRIC ACID, CETYLPYRIDINIUM CHLORIDE, TETRASODIUM EDTA, PEG-4 LAURATE, IODOPROPYNYL BUTYLCARBAMATE, FRAGRANCE.

This one has mineral oil in the top thirds which can be potentially contaminated with PAHs. And this cheap mineral oil is the petro-chemical that so-called 'moisturises' your baby's bum. And phenoxyethanol follows soon. It has artificial fragrance.

After examining three popular wet wipes, I think I would use them in a conservative way now. Avoid using on the face completely. If baby's bum is wet because the 'moisture' from the wet wipes transfers there, it is good to wipe that off with tissues. It is best to wash baby's bum with water if you have the chance and time. With a maid, it certainly is easier. You will save lots of wet wipes too!

AROMABABY :

PURIFIED WATER, VEGETABLE GLYCERIN, COLD PRESSED PURE SWEET ALMOND OIL, D-ALPHA-TOCOPHEROL (GMO-FREE NATURAL VIT E), PROPRIETY BLEND OF ESSENTIAL OILS, HYDROXYMEHTYLGYCINATE, POLYSORBATE, PHENOXYETHANOL

Unfortunately, Aromababy does use phenoxyethanol as a preserving ingredient though in very small amount right at the end of the list. Beyond that, every other ingredient is fantastic. I do not buy or use this item myself. I do hope one day Aromababy will come up with totally preservative-free wet wipes. I do not have any perfectly safe wet wipes to recommend.

Nowadays, I standby with me three wet square towels in small zip-log bags when I take Samuel out. I use them to wipe his face or hands if they get dirty while outdoors. They are easy to pack and I just bring them home and throw into the laundry basket for wash.

I am rather concerned with my boy's vegetable intake as at this age as children can be rather fussy about what they want to eat. He loves carrots, potatoes, corns, grapes, golden kiwi and bananas but that is not enough. He is quite lazy when it comes to pears and apples. He spits out the fibre after chewing them to extract the juice. Well, it is better than nothing. He has tried strawberries but will only eat them if they are really sweet, which is rather rare. He does not want anything to do with oranges no matter how hard I tried to entice him to eat them. He prefers the juice that comes from cartons from supermarkets but well, how much nutrients are left in them after all the processing and pasteurisation?

I have to cut his greens into fine bits so that he will eat them. And he will spit them out if they are too big. That's where the table warfare begins haha! I give him choy sum, buk choy, kai lan, turnip, cabbage, spinach and brocoli. I have read that fruits nowadays do not have as much goodness in them as compared to olden days. I wonder how true this is.  Anybody has any idea?

Of course, training my precious one to like his greens is important and so far so good! On top of that, I give him Mannabears. These are yummy pectin gums in gummi-bear shapes. Samuel shunned them in the beginning. He thought they were awful and cried. After tasting them, he now loves them and will always ask for them after dinner. We use these gummi-bears as rewards for finishing his dinner. It is better to reward with these nutritious bears than to give him lollipops or jellies.

If you are wondering what good treats to offer to your kids, you can consider this product. Check out more on  https://www.mannatech.com/Shopping/Product.aspx

There are three flavours - grape, punch and lime. Only fruit and vegetable ingredients are used. These pectin gums are also formulated with nutritional goodness of 12 different dehydrated fruit and vegetables. It also contains Ambrotose Complex. Ambrotose Complex is a recipe of glyconutrients. Glyconutrients are taking the world by storm. Now they are called the missing link to human wellness. They are essentially necessary sugars which are important for cell-to-cell communication in our body. These necessary sugars are found on every surface of our cells.

                                                                 

The ingredients to these Mannabears are :

Raw sugar, tapioca syrup, water, Ambrotose® complex (contains vegetable gums [pectin, gum acacia, gum tragacanth], xylitol and aloe vera inner leaf gel powder), natural flavours, natural colour: anthocyanins, pomegranate powder, acid (citric acid) vegetable powders (Brussels sprout, broccoli, cabbage, carrot, cauliflower, kale, tomato, turnip), fruit powders (papaya, pineapple).

Serving size: 4 bears (I only give Samuel 2 bears for his age). One bottle can last for about two months for Samuel.

Do you give your kids snacks?  What kinds of snacks do you give them? Almost all snacks in the supermarket are loaded with unhealthy stuff such as sugars, salts, transfats, vegetable oils, preservatives etc. Do you ever study the what goes into making the snacks?

I give my son two organic snacks : Bellamy's Organic Apple Chips and Whole kids organic sultanas. Both are products of Australia. These are healthy, natural and thus safe snacks to eat.

Personally, I love Whole Kids Organic fruit-filled bars.  Healthy and yummy snack good for on the go! Whole Kids have some other healthy snacks for the whole family.

Find out more on:

http://www.nourish.net.au/

http://www.bellamysorganicfarms.com.au/

The apple chips are sold in Safeway and Coles. The sultanas are sold in many organic shops.  Look for the BFA (Biological Farmers of Australia) or NASAA (The National Association for Sustainable Agriculture Australia Ltd) logos on the products to make sure they are truly authentic organic produce. These snacks are surely 200% better off than potato chips (and french fries too) which contain acrylamide and is not good to snack too much on. It is fine to snack on potato chips occasionally. My husband and son are voracious snackers and they love potato chips.  I usually buy Rock Deli's as they are baked with sunflower oil and contains substantially lower amounts of transfats.

With eating sultanas in particular, it is important to take care of the teeth as this snack is sticky and can stay on them.

The sun is our friend and foe. That is an apt statement. Without the sun, plants will die and inevitably, all animals will die. Without the sun, our Earth will perish. Yet too much of the sun is not a good thing for our skin.

The sun's UV radiation is composed of UVA, UVB and UVC rays. UVC rays are the most energetic out of the three but thankfully, they are very much filtered off by the Earth's ozone layer and do not reach us. Both UVA and UVB cause skin changes such as premature aging and skin cancer.

Avoid going under the sun from 9am to 4pm. Wear proper clothes and head protection. It is also good to invest in a safe and effective sunscreen. Many out there either work partially or have undesirable ingredients. There are two classes of sunscreen ingredients : 1. Physical barriers. 2. Those that absorb and deflect sun rays via a chemical reaction.

Avoid all these ingredients: PABA, Benzophonone-3 (oxybenzone), Octyl Methoxycinnamate (octinoxate), parabens (synthetic preservatives), padimate-O, parsol 1789 (avobenzone), octisalate

All the above ingredients have to potential to cause skin irritations, allergies and reproductive toxicity. Some are readily absorbed by the skin and can cause side effects that we never know. Some of them work only partially and may protect against UVA but not UVB or vice versa. Some are such weak blocking agents that you can forget about having them. Most sunscreens use a combinations of several ingredients and also lots of preservatives. Here are some tips to choosing a safe and effective sunscreen :

• Get sunscreen with either zinc oxide or titanium dioxide. Both are physical screens against UVA and UVB rays. Both are safe and not absorbed by the skin. Zinc oxide is better than titanium dioxide because it covers a wider spectrum in terms of protection.
  
• Get a sunscreen with a SPF 15 to 30. There is not a huge difference between products with SPF values higher than 30. Sunscreens with SPF 50 provide just 1.3% more protection from UVB rays than sunscreens with SPF 30. It is more important to apply sunscreen generously than to seek out sunscreens with ultra-high SPF ratings. Few people put on enough to actually reach the product's SPF rating.
• SPF numbers only refer to the ability of the sunscreen to protect you against UVB rays. They have nothing to do with protecting you against UVA rays.
  
• Re-apply sunscreen according to the time instructed on the product (especially more important when exposed to water during swimming and sweating). There is no such things as waterproof sunscreens.
  
• Look for a sunscreen without loads of ingredcients especially synthetic preservatives. You do not want to load so many things on your face. In the end, the sunscreen is doing your skin and body more harm than giving you sun protection.
• Do not take the sunscreen information on the tube or bottle at face value. Check the ingredients thoroughly. When a sunscreen says it covers broad spectrum protection, it may not necessarily give you that protection.

Here are the ingredients of one sunscreen which I have trusted and used before. I am glad that I am now educated and will never buy it again :

Thermal spring water, ethylhexl methoxycinnamate, bis-ethylhexyloxyphenol methoxyphenyl triazine, cyclomethicone, isodecyl neopentanoate, glycerin, methylene bis-benzotriazolyl tetramethybutylphenol, water, glyceryl stearate, potassium cetylphosphate, stearyl alcohol, pvp/eicosene copolymer, butylparaben, caprylic/capric triglyceride, decyl glucoside, disodium edta, ethylparaben, fragrance, isobutylparaben, methylparaben, o-cymen-5-ol, phenoxythanol, propylparaben, sorbic acid, titanium dioxide, tocopheryl glucoside, triethoxycaprylysilane, xanthan gum, zinc oxide.

What a load of stuff that goes onto my face! Now i use Miessence's certified organic Outdoor Reflect Balm which I am glad to have found.

Ingredients : organic olea europaea (olive) juice extract, zinc oxide, organic butyrospermum parkii (shea) fruit butter, organic unrefined cera alba(beeswax), avena sativa (oat) kernel flour, polygonoum multiflorum root extract, d-alpha tocopherol (natural vitamin e), organic copernicia prunifera (carauba) wax, aroma (essential oils), rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) leaf extract, dunaliella salina algae extract.



Check up more : https://www.mionegroup.com/product/13430

We find fluoride in almost every toothpaste in the market. Do you know that fluoride is a toxin?  It is used to poison rats! The contents of a family-size tube of fluoridated toothpaste are enough to kill a 12.5 kg child.

Tooth decay is caused by poor dental hygiene and high consumption of refined sugar products. Fluoride does NOT stop tooth decay.

Dental fluorosis is a condition that results from the intake of too much fluoride during the period of tooth development, usually from birth to about 6-8 years of age. The severity of this condition ranges from very mild to severe, depending on the extent of fluoride exposure during the period of tooth development. Mild dental fluorosis is usually characterized by the appearance of small white areas in the enamel.

I did not research about toothpastes and had used one well-advertised household brand of children's toothpaste for Samuel for months.  The ingredients : SORBITOL, WATER, HYDRATED SILICA, GLYCERIN, SODIUM LAURYL SULFATE, AROMA, XANTHAN GUM, SODIUM SACCHARIN, CARBOMER, SODIUM HYDROXIDE, SODIUM FLUORIDE, CI 42090. Contains FD&C BLUE NO 1.

It was only when a dentist friend told me one day that I should not be using any fluoridated toothpaste for my son that I really started doing deeper research.  To my horror, my son had been swallowing this yummy toothpaste including the detergent Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Sodium hydroxide and Sodium Fluoride. It never occurred to me to change his toothpaste because firstly, he enjoyed brushing his teeth as the toothpaste was delicious and secondly, this toothpaste manufacturer is well-known world-wide.

I have since switched to First Teeth Baby Toothpaste. These are the ingredients and information :

Active ingredients : Lactoferrin, Lysozyme, Lactoperoxidase (Enzymes are derived from milk and eggs)
Inactive ingredients: Glycerin, Purified Water, Xylitol, Sorbitol, Propylene Glycol, Pectin, Xanthan Gum, Silica, Natural Apple Flavor, Natural Banana Flavor, Calcium Lactate, Aloe Vera.

100% Ingestible Baby Toothpaste. Recommended by Dentists and Pediatricians. Contains Milk Enzymes...The Best Natural Protection for Your Child's Teeth. Fluoride Free. For Ages 3 Months to 3 Years (or when they know how to spit). Real Apple-Banana Flavor. No Artificial Preservatives or Colors. Made in USA.

I do not find this toothpaste selling where I lived though. I have got to either import it or get friends to buy for me when they go for holidays.

If any of you are thinking of switching to safer toothpastes (the toothpaste goes into your mouth!), you may like to try Miessence's Toothpastes with the following ingredients :

ORGANIC ALOE VERA LEAF JUICE, PURIFIED WATER, SODIUM BICARBONATE, NON-GMO XANTHUM GUM. SEA SALT, ORGANIC LEMON ESSENTIAL OIL, ORGANIC LEMON MYRTLE ESSENTIAL OIL, STEVIA REBAUDIANA BERTONI.

It also come in Mint and Anise flavor. When I first tried this toothpaste, I really was not used to it because it did not foam (there's no detergents) like those I have been using for years. It also tasted rather salty. But after a while, I began to love it. I must say it is an acquired taste. There is a compromise, in terms of esthetics. But more importantly, I know that it is a safe and equally effective toothpaste.

Find out more on www.onegrp.com