Isn’t that a lovely photo? No, that’s not me but I used to suffer from chronic aphthous ulcers, better known as canker sores. I am sure you are overjoyed I shared that bit of information with you. But there is really is a reason behind this. You see, after years of constantly suffering from these blights in my mouth (they would cause me to not be able to enjoy foods, especially chocolate) I finally asked my doc about them. It turns out that “The large majority of toothpastes sold in the U.S. contain Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), which is known to cause aphthous ulcers in certain individuals” (that’s from Wiki, not my doc. But that’s pretty much what he said). So the quest began for SLS free oral care products (can’t use mouthwashes either because they cause the same issue). I first came across a very disgusting “hippy” toothpaste. I can’t even remember the name. But the flavor was Green tea and Cinnamon *GAG* I was able to find a normal SLS free toothpaste made by Sensodyne. It refreshes and keeps my mouth canker free. On my move I recently discovered a mouthwash made by a company called “Tom’s”. It is nice tasting, doesn’t make me gag with it’s hippy crap and leaves my mouth feeling fresh.

So if you find yourself suffering from constant aphthous ulcers, aka canker sores (or known by me as Evil Nasty Mouth Buggers “ENMB”) you might consider the fact that you too are having problems with our “friend” Sodium Lauryl Sulfate and might need to look to our organic friends for the answer.