ELECTRIC toothbrushes could be leaving traces of heavy metals in your
mouth.
Phillip Colquitt, a nurse and lab technician who runs an independent research
company in Queensland, Australia, wondered why he was left with a metallic taste
after using his powered brush. So he scrubbed some test tubes with the brush and
several toothpastes, and sent the slurries off for analysis.
A surprising amount of nickel and chromium came off the brush, he will report
in The Science of the Total Environment. After six minutes’ brushing,
levels of chromium were a fifth of the daily recommended intake. These metals
have…
