Is There Lead In Your “Natural” Flouride-Free Toothpaste? Here’s What Testing Shows.

I used to assume “natural” toothpaste was the safe choice. As long as the label said “Flouride-Free” on it, I figured it was a good one. But then I came across this 2025 independent lab testing, and it turns out it’s not as simple as that.

They tested 51 toothpaste brands and found that 90% were positive for lead. And many of these were clean, mineral-based, or “natural” toothpaste brands.

So I could no longer just look for “flouride-free” and be done with it. There’s more in these tubes that healthy brand toothpaste labels and ingredient lists won’t list.

In this post I walk-through what this independent toothpaste testing found, how the US limit for lead in toothpaste is higher than other country’s standards, and what toothpaste we’ve now switched to in our house after these learnings.

I do my best to attribute each claim back to its source, whether it be independent lab data or a named lawsuit.

What’s actually in your toothpaste tube? (The testing)

The numbers here below come from independent third-party lab testing run in 2025 by Lead Safe Mama (Tamara Rubin), where consumer products were sent to outside labs for analysis rather than relying on manufacturer disclosures. That link goes to her “Comparative Chart of Toxicant Levels Found in Popular Toothpaste Products: 2025” report.

Fifty-one toothpaste brands were tested.

Here’s what came back:

• 46 of 51 (90%) tested positive for lead
• 33 of 51 (65%) tested positive for arsenic
• 24 of 51 (47%) tested positive for mercury
• 18 of 51 (35%) tested positive for cadmium

Learning about this topic has taught me that “detected” is not the same as “dangerous.”

Lab-detected trace levels in many cases land under the current federal limit for toothpaste.

But to stop at “current federal limits”, thinking that safe and sound, is a bit too naive.

Current FDA limits allow up to 10,000 ppb lead in fluoride-free toothpaste and 20,000 ppb in fluoride toothpaste. In comparison, California’s legal limit for lead in baby food is 6 ppb.

Between the Lead Safe Mama testing data and active litigations, a handful of specific brands showed up repeatedly:

• Colgate – a class-action lawsuit filed in 2025 in a New York federal court alleges the company failed to disclose lead, arsenic, and mercury in its toothpaste while advertising that it “tests every batch.” Colgate Total Whitening and Kids Watermelon Burst were cited at lead levels above 200 ppb. Independent lab testing separately reported Colgate Total Whitening positive for lead at 539 ppb.
• Tom’s of Maine – named in the same class-action; the complaint cites Kids Silly Strawberry toothpaste specifically. Worth noting: Tom’s of Maine is now owned by Colgate (they sold out).
• Hello – the one we’re been using. The Lead Safe Mama testing reported Hello Kids Fresh Watermelon (fluoride-free) positive for lead, arsenic, and mercury, with lead detected at 493 ppb.
• Boka – Boka’s Ela Mint tested positive for lead (32 ppb), mercury (10 ppb), and arsenic (21 ppb); Kids Orange Cream tested positive for lead (27.4 ppb) and mercury (8.2 ppb) in the Lead Safe Mama testing.

Why “within the US limit” is the wrong bar when choosing a truly natural toothpaste

Looking at that top row in the chart above, the US allows up to 20,000 ppb (20 ppm) of lead in toothpaste while the EU allows 500 ppb (40 times stricter).

Germany has its own toothpaste-specific limit of 0.5 mg/kg, which is more similar to EU standards.

On arsenic, the US allows 3,000 ppb while the EU allows 100 ppb (EU is 30 times stricter).

On mercury, the US federal limit sits at 1,000 ppb and Germany’s toothpaste-specific limit is 100 ppb (10 times stricter).

Washington State’s Toxic-Free Cosmetics Act set a 1,000 ppb (1 ppm) lead limit for toothpaste starting January 2025 which is far closer to EU’s 500 ppb than the US federal 20,000 ppb standard.

This US regulation isn’t a shocker. We also permit food dyes (Red 40, Yellow 5, etc.) that are restricted or require warning labels in the EU.

Glyphosate is banned or heavily restricted in a number of countries, but definitely NOT in the good ol US of A (perhaps if we still had that A attached and didn’t become a corporation we’d not be using glyphosate nationwide today..).

So it makes sense that regulatory limits on toxic compounds in toothpaste are far more permissive in the states in comparison to other country standards.

For lead specifically, no health authority has established a level of exposure that’s considered fully “safe.”

California’s Prop 65 warning threshold triggers at just 0.5 micrograms per day – another way of measuring risk.

So now I basically just try to find a toothpaste at zero or closest to it versus trust numbers that are “under the US limit.”

Why “natural” toothpaste brands show up so much on these tested lists:

Mineral ingredients like calcium carbonate, nano-hydroxyapatite, bentonite clay, silica, and titanium dioxide are earth-derived.

They naturally carry trace heavy metals from the ground they’re mined from.

Tainted toothpaste is not always a case of negligence or fraud. It seems to be simply the reality of how mineral sourcing works, and the exact reason why fluoride-free “natural” toothpastes are found right alongside the mainstream brand toothpastes.

After reviewing the toothpaste testing, here’s the result and the best of what’s out there right now.

The Best Natural Toothpastes In 2026

You won’t find these at your nearest gas station or general store, but we have online marketplaces in this day and age, and you may be lucky enough to have a proper retail store near you that stocks quality healthy toothpastes like these.

The list of verified “clean” toothpastes that’ve gone through independent lab testing isn’t long.

Of all the products sent to third-party labs by Lead Safe Mama, there was a solid handful at most that came back as “non-detect” for all four metals: lead, arsenic, mercury, and cadmium.

So here’s what did test clean.

One important catch first – these results are product-specific, not brand-specific.

The exact version and flavor matters, because a different flavor from the same brand can use different minerals and test completely differently.

This section contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. I only point to products based on the third-party testing linked above..

For adults (the shortest list):

• Weleda Salt Toothpaste (fluoride-free) – an acquired taste, but one of the only clean adult options.
• Miessence Mint (fluoride-free, made in Australia) – mint only; the lemon version uses bentonite clay. Lead Safe Mama does a full write up on Miessence Mint. It goes out of stock and is harder to find in the states. I’d go direct to their site for this one.

For kids:

• Dr. Brown’s Baby Toothpaste, Strawberry (fluoride-free)
• Orajel Kids Training Toothpaste, Berry Fruity (fluoride-free, the Elmo tube)
• Kid’s Spry Tooth Gel with Xylitol, Original (fluoride-free)

(Two others, Essential Oxygen and Pegciz, also tested clean but come with caveats – staining reports and an unclear source – so I left them off the main list.)

The rule that outlasts any list: the toothpastes that tested positive tended to share a few earth-derived mineral ingredients that carry trace metals:

• bentonite clay
• hydroxyapatite (and nano-hydroxyapatite)
• calcium carbonate
• hydrated silica
• and titanium dioxide

Those are often the very ingredients “natural” and “mineral” toothpastes advertise.

So when you flip a tube over, those are the words worth a second look.

Here’s a shot of the Hello toothpaste I no longer use after seeing the testing done:

The toothpaste we’re currently using

I’d been using David’s since my functional medicine doc introduced me to this brand toothpaste.

Their paste comes in a beautiful, premium feel, recyclable metal tube like they used to do it in the old days, plus with an EWG Verified stamp – exactly the kind of “good” choice I was looking for at the time when transitioning away from Tom’s flouride-free toothpastes and Hello’s flouride free toothpaste.

However, David’s toothpaste (natural peppermint) came back positive for lead and arsenic in the Lead Safe Mama testing. David’s disputes those results, but you can read the lab report and decide for yourself.

You don’t actually need toothpaste at all.

A good toothbrush plus a water flosser does most of the real work – plenty of people (and dentists) will tell you brushing well with water beats brushing lazily with the fanciest paste.

Simple, cheap, and nothing to test.

Want the other three swaps worth making first?

Toothpaste is one of four everyday things I dug into the same way – by reading the actual lab testing instead of the label on the front. My free Low-Tox Family Starter Guide walks you through all four, in the same “here’s the honest version” format:

• Cookware – what’s worth tossing, and what’s genuinely safer
• Oats – the glyphosate question, minus the panic
• Floss – the PFAS one almost nobody talks about
• Toothpaste – the clean list from this post, saved for your next grocery run

No fear-mongering, no perfection required. Just the swaps I’d make first, and why.

[ Send me the free guide → ]

One email, and the guide lands in your inbox. Unsubscribe anytime.

End of the day, the goal is knowing what to actually look at when shopping toothpaste, and not to be alarmed or naive about it based on the label and marketing. With a little diligence, a good one can be found.

If you’re interested in this topic, check out my PFAS-free dental floss post or our homemade cinnamon and clove mouthwash recipe!