TikTokers using Magic Erasers to whiten their teeth. Why that makes dentists cringe
.png "Screengrab of @thebentist’s TikTok video debunking a social media trend that claims scrubbing your teeth with Magic Erasers can whiten them.")
Yet another health-related TikTok trend has stunned the internet. Now, people are using Magic Erasers — the cleaning sponge used to remove stains on walls and grime on bathtubs — in an attempt to whiten their stained teeth.
Some users admit their decision to follow the trend may be as “stupid” as the Tide Pod challenge that poisoned at least 10,600 kids in 2017 alone, while others claim the product has been deemed safe for oral use.
But dentists are actually cringing, and most, if not all, agree it’s a bad idea, even if it does scrub away the yellow.
The primary ingredient in Magic Erasers is melamine foam, which when mixed with water and other ingredients, becomes “hard as glass and acts like a really abrasive sandpaper,” according to Dr. Benjamin Winters, a dentist at Wincrest Orthodontics in Texas who goes by @thebentist on TikTok.
Winters reacted to a user’s video that showed them grab a small piece of wet Magic Eraser and rub it on their teeth, avoiding their gums as the product squeaked back and forth.
“Yeah, your teeth are white because you scrubbed all the enamel off them. So, in fact, no don’t do this,” Winters said in a video posted to TikTok.
Dr. Zainab Mackie, a Detroit dentist, agrees the sponges could scrub stains off your teeth, but only by permanently damaging your enamel.
“Enamel — which is the outer layer of the tooth — actually protects your teeth, and it’s actually the white layer of your teeth because the second layer is more yellow,” Mackie told BuzzFeed.
Procter & Gamble, the company that owns the brand Mr. Clean that makes Magic Erasers, says to “not use on skin or other parts of the body. Using on skin will likely cause abrasions. Keep out of reach of toddlers and pets to avoid accidental ingestion. If swallowed, drink 1-2 glasses of water and call a physician or poison control center (product contains alcohol ethoxylates) — do not induce vomiting unless they tell you to do so.”
TikTokers cite a 2015 study that concluded melamine sponges can remove stains from teeth more effectively than toothbrushes, and with less scratching to their surfaces. However, users left out the detail that the study was done on an extracted human tooth, not one still inside someone’s mouth.
Some experts say Magic Erasers also contain formaldehyde, a strong-smelling chemical best known for preserving dead animals and people. (Think frog dissections in biology class).
It can irritate your eyes, nose and throat, but when mixed with melamine, “the result is a tough resin in which those toxic effects are neutralized,” according to WIRED. Yet, some dentists still worry about its effects on people who put Magic Erasers in their mouth.
“Melamine foam is made of formaldehyde, which the International Agency for Research on Cancer considers to be carcinogenic. It’s highly toxic if ingested, inhaled, and [potentially dangerous via] any other form of direct contact,” Dr. Maha Yakob, an oral health care expert, told Shape. “Like many things, it depends on your technique and how often you use it. Repeated and harsh use of melamine foam can result in tooth enamel wear and, most of all, accidental ingestion.”
But in an email to fact-checking website Snopes, Procter & Gamble said “formaldehyde is not and has never been an ingredient in Magic Eraser.”
Instead, the products contain “formaldehyde-melamine-sodium bisulfite copolymer... this ingredient is not formaldehyde and poses no health or safety risks,” the company said. “Think of this name like ‘sodium chloride’, which is table salt. Sodium by itself can be dangerous, but sodium chloride — salt — is safe.”
The company said Magic Erasers are “considered nontoxic,” but “it is possible that formaldehyde may be present in minute, trace amounts as a result of the manufacturing process. Even then, the amount present is significantly lower than standards established by governmental agencies and trade associations, and is actually less than what is found in indoor air.”
McClatchy reached out to Procter & Gamble for comment and is awaiting response.
If you really want to whiten your teeth, Mackie suggests starting with whitening strips, looking for the ingredients hydrogen peroxide and carbamide peroxide in the products, BuzzFeed reported.
“A safe age range to start whitening your teeth is between 14 and 16 years old, but even then, if you can wait, I think that’s better. If you do it too young, your teeth will get very sensitive because the enamel is still thin, and the pulp — which is the blood vessel — is very large and close to the enamel,” she said. “You’ll also be starting the process of wearing down your tooth enamel very early, and you want to protect your teeth for as long as possible.”
Your safest option is to pick up a toothbrush and some floss.
This story was originally published July 2, 2021 at 4:13 PM with the headline "TikTokers using Magic Erasers to whiten their teeth. Why that makes dentists cringe."
