Sensodyne Repair And Protect - Pasta de dientes 75ml (pack de 1)

Purchased from and shipped to the United States.

Product is the UK Sensodyne Repair and Protect (75 ml) containing BOTH NovaMin and Fluoride (as per the ingredients listed on the package). As I said, THIS IS THE ONE YOU WANT. This is also relatively cheap ($7.98/tube shipped is not cheap, but it's not ridiculous either).

The US version contains stannous (tin) fluoride (you know, Fluoristan, from the '60s), which isn't bad, but it won't "repair" the teeth like Novamin is supposed to. Glaxosmithkline has no trouble overcharging for the US version, despite not containing any advanced bioglass technology. In short, the US version was engineered to drain your bank account, not to repair your tooth enamel repair. Avoid the US version like the plague.

As a toothpaste, it's fairly standard. Average flavor, texture, whatever. There is a slight crunch that might be the Novamin particles, but I'm not sure how large they're supposed to be. Don't store it with the cap off or the bioglass will absorb water and become less effective.

Now some background on Novamin? Keeping in mind I'm not a medical professional:

For whatever reason, Novamin is not sold in the US. It has been speculated that FDA approval could not be had for "repair" toothpaste (despite the fact that the drugstore is filled with products that promise to "restore" your teeth). I believe since Glaxosmithkline purchased Novamin, no Novamin products are sold in the US (this includes all of the hippie fluoride-free toothpastes that were available).

This product contains 1450 ppm fluoride (as 1.08% w/w sodium monofluorophosphate). I have found claims that the maximum ppm fluoride in the US is either 1100 or 1500 ppm. Regardless, 1450 ppm of fluoride is shown to be MORE effective than Novamin alone (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20546825) at preventing demineralization of teeth. Higher ppm is even better so if you need it, ask your dentist if you can have a prescription for the 5000 ppm fluoride toothpaste.

However if you don't want to or can't do that, don't need prescription-strength toothpaste, or don't want to risk being exposed to very high levels of fluoride, this product, apparently, combines both a higher-than-average level of fluoride (good) and Novamin (also good). It appears that Novamin will simultaneously whiten teeth by causing fresh hydroxyapatite (the primary mineral in tooth enamel - also happens to be white) to be formed on the tooth surface. This is in contrast to other toothpastes which remove stains with hydrogen peroxide and abrasives.

With continuous use, Novamin is supposed to build up a layer of hydroxyapatite on your enamel, covering up any exposed dentin and causing sensitivity to decrease. I believe (I am neither a dentist or a materials scientist) that Novamin is more effective at -covering- exposed areas than fluoride, as it is deposited (in my understanding) as a bioglass particle which binds to teeth containing the ions necessary to form hydroxyapatite (which are then released at the tooth surface). That is, the particle creates a local covering of hydroxyapatite, as opposed to the fluoride which is kind of just floating around everywhere.

The hydroxyapatite deposits are only supposed to be a few microns thick (my interpretation based on this http://www.repairandprotect.ca/pdf/NovaMin_JCD_2011_Clinical_Summaries_HR_EN.pdf), so this won't regrade your teeth and fill in potholes (go to the dentist!), but it should prevent sensitivity and protect against future damage with regular use.

But again, I'm not a medical professional. This is just toothpaste, you should be okay if you use it. If you have a real problem, go to the dentist and don't try to self-treat any conditions with this stuff.

This is the stuff with Novamin. I like the taste, not too strong, and it seems like it works good overall for cleaning. I didn't buy this for the sensitivity aspect, I was looking more to repair my weak enamel. I have had cavities and weak enamel my whole life. I grew up without Fluoride in the water, and genetically we don't have great teeth to start with. My WW2 era dentist when I was a kid in the 70's and 80's wasn't always up on the latest techniques either. A bad combination of events equals lots of drilling and filling in my lifetime.

I don't have any hard evidence this works, but (visually) it appears to my eye, that my teeth are healing. My teeth just look and feel better overall. This probably will take years to prove or disprove if this product works, but I don't want to NOT use it and see what happens. There is clinical evidence that Novamin helps with tooth enamel, it is too bad the FDA won't allow this over the counter in the USA.

It takes a few weeks to receive due to overseas shipping, but I buy 3 tubes, and reorder when I open the last tube. The new shipment always gets here way before I am out.

Hands down the most amazing sensitivity toothpaste I've ever tried. GSK should feel ashamed for keeping this from the US consumers. By the 2nd day my sensitivity was easily half of what it was, and that's saying a lot because my recession is so bad I need grafting. I'm a week in to using it twice a day and I can finally drink cold water- something I haven't been able to do since I was a teen.

I also work in the dental field and have been telling all of my patients about this!

What can I say? Novamin works wonders. I originally bought a tube when I was in Dubai for vacation and thought it was overhyped. When it ran out I was using regular toothpaste found here in the US. Certain teeth started bothering me again so I bought this from the UK via Amazon and it really helps with sensitive teeth. I strongly recommend brushing at night before sleeping. It is strange to think Novamin was actually invented in the USA but is no longer available here because GSK bought the patent and has yet to release it to the US market. It was once available here before the buy-out. We are left with Stannous fluoride Sensodyne which does work better than sodium fluoride but possibly not as effective as Novamin. I also recommend Crest Pro-Health with Stannous Fluoride. It does a good job with sensitive teeth. I use that and UK version of Sensodyne interchangeably for maximum protection.

I've been using Senso-Dyne toothpaste. Usually, I am an all natural guy but I read about a product they add to the toothpaste called Nova-Min. It helps remineralize the teeth. I've been using it for close to 2 yeats and my teeth seem to be in the best shape they have been in many many years. The problem with this is that there is a patent on Nova-Min and Smith Kline Glaxo bought it. It does conain stannus fluoride. They only add it to the Senso-Dyne toothpaste sold in Europe and maybe the rest of the world but not in the USA. I m not a conspiracy theorist buff but something is not right. I don't know who is being paid off. It seems to be either the ADA, Smith Kline Glaxo or the FDA but big Pharma has a hand in it somewhere. I have to order it from England on Amazon.