SUMMARY: Cetylpyridinium Chloride (CPC) is an FDA approved ingredient that helps to guard the mouth against gum disease and bad breath.
Oral health products all make claims, including keeping teeth safer from plaque build-up and gingivitis, but can they deliver on them? Really attacking the most common risks to oral health means applying a dose of science to formulate effective solutions for the problems.
One such solution is to include the CPC (Cetylpyridinium Chloride) in oral care products. This antibacterial, which has won FDA certification for its safety and effectiveness, can significantly improve the health of your gums and oral tissues.
The nature of CPC
Perio Expertise has a good overview of what CPC is and does. In a nutshell, over an effective period of three to five hours, CPC battles the viruses, fungi and multiple types of bacteria responsible for oral health problems. You see, CPC molecules carry a positive charge, and after they bind with negatively charged bacteria cell membranes, they neutralize and kill the bacteria.
The action of fighting bacteria cells is like an outside force breaking the outside of a water balloon, causing it to leak and lose its shape. The ingredient has been found safe over long-term use, both as part of therapeutic oral rinses targeting gingivitis and products meant to keep bad breath contained.
CPC also keeps biofilm (a bacteria) from growing, reduces gingivitis and controls plaque, inhibiting both its formation and build-up. For this one chemical element to have so many positive effects is truly impressive, making it a very productive and effective component of any oral care products that contain CPC.
Choosing oral care products
Many of the oral care products sold over the counter today contain problematic ingredients that are more likely to increase bacteria growth than control it. Many contain alcohol, harsh detergents or are highly acidic. They are creating an environment where bacteria can thrive, leading to bad breath and tooth decay.
TheraBreath has improved its extra strength perio rinse formula, called Healthy Gums, by adding CPC as an ingredient. When used as directed, TheraBreath Healthy Gums Oral Rinse significantly reduces bleeding gums, gingivitis, plaque and tartar buildup and of course, bad breath. As always, there are NO artificial colors, flavors, or alcohol.
In fact, TheraBreath offers a whole line of mouthwash formulas meant to deal with the problems afflicting the mouth today, all free of harmful ingredients that give bacteria a place to grow. These range from high-strength formulas meant to tackle serious and recurring bad breath to a kids formula specifically designed to keep teeth strong and free of cavities as young ones grow.
Oral health is a universal, everyday issue, but when a little extra effort goes into keeping the mouth in great shape, the results can speak for themselves. Harmful bacteria is squarely in the crosshairs when you pick the right oral care products.