Retired St. Louis Dentist Invents World's First Color-Changing Toothpaste

ST. LOUIS, Nov. 9, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Retired St. Louis dentist and inventor Dr. Howard Wright is releasing his groundbreaking color-changing toothpaste after a 10-year process that has become a labor of love.  

The new dental breakthrough, Vortex Toothpaste, makes kids want to brush their teeth longer and more vigorously thanks to a fun color-changing process.

"Ten years is a long time to spend fighting for your product. But if you truly believe in your invention, the fight is exhilarating," says Dr. Wright, a graduate of the Washington University School of Dental Medicine.

The color-changing phenomenon itself is refreshingly simple. Vortex is dispensed as twin streams of red and blue toothpaste and, as the child starts to brush, the colors are mixed into a vivid purple.

"By brushing vigorously, kids delight in watching the toothpaste change color," says Dr. Wright.  "The color change is accomplished not through a chemical reaction, but by simple optics."

Vortex Toothpaste also has an emphasis on natural ingredients, and contains no sodium-lauryl-sulfate, or SLS, a common foaming agent.

"When brushing with conventional toothpaste," says Dr. Wright, "children find that the heavy foaming makes breathing through the mouth difficult, making the experience frightening. Remove the SLS, make it change color, and you have kids wanting to brush their teeth."

Likewise, Dr. Wright discovered a study by the University of Oslo determining that SLS was directly linked to the development of canker sores, making the elimination of that foaming agent a priority to him.

While the chemical side of Vortex came together swiftly, the toothpaste tubes themselves proved to be a problem. To prevent the colors prematurely mixing, the Vortex Toothpaste tube must have an interior barrier to separate the colors.

"Every plastics manufacturer I spoke with told me it couldn't be done—that no one had ever made a toothpaste tube like that before," says Dr. Wright. "I had pretty much given up hope, and was ready to let my patent lapse when I decided to call one last manufacturer. And they had the perfect tube."

Vortex Toothpaste is not Dr. Wright's first innovative invention. Twenty years ago, the retired dentist and scuba-diving enthusiast patented the Storm safety whistle, which can be heard up to 50 feet underwater and is the loudest whistle in the world. Over the years, Dr. Wright's All Weather Safety Whistle Company has sold millions of Storm whistles in more than 30 countries around the world.

"The easiest way to deal with someone who says your idea is impossible," says Wright, "is to deal with someone else."

Vortex Color Changing Toothpaste retails for $6.95, is proudly manufactured in Muskegon, Michigan, and is distributed in St. Louis, Missouri.  

ABOUT:

With a commitment to local manufacturing and continued innovation, Wright Toothpaste, Inc. is dedicated to solving poor tooth-brushing habits through their unique Vortex Color Changing Toothpaste.  For more information, visit www.vortextoothpaste.com.

CONTACT:
Jessica W. Buha
Marketing Director, Wright Toothpaste
314-436-3332
[email protected]

SOURCE Wright Toothpaste, Inc.