No, toothpaste tends to irritate the skin. Please avoid it.
In the past, most toothpaste contained an ingredient called Triclosan, an antibacterial agent that helped fight plaque and gingivitis. Triclosan does not directly reduce pimples, but it can help control bacteria on the skin which may reduce inflammation of existing pimples. Unfortunately, the FDA mandated that triclosan be removed from toothpaste. This means that modern toothpaste is less effective at treating acne than it used to be.
Instead try these other spot treatments:
- benzoyl peroxide
- salicylic acid
- sulfur
- hydrocolloid pimple patches
So, will toothpaste really help with pimples? No. Not only will it not help reduce existing pimples, but it might actually irritate the skin making acne worse. The ingredients in toothpaste, including sodium laureth sulfate and hydrogen peroxide, tend to irritate the skin at high concentrations seen in toothpaste.
