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Toothpaste causing Lip problems
A lot of professional brass players complain about a number of problems caused by products they use in, on, or around their mouths. So many products will cause minute lip swelling or irritation followed by short-term playing problems. I can't give you a complete list as of yet; however, some of the most common ingredients in toothpaste, for example, can cause lip swelling, mouth burning, and/or excessive salivation in some players. Some players report that over-the-counter pain medications CAUSE lip swelling [while others say it prevents swelling]. Some heart medications will cause tissue swelling as will many other drugs [you have to speak to your physician about all potential side effects of the medications you take]. Some players can develop contact dermatitis from the plating alloys in their mouthpieces. It can even be a reaction to a mouthpiece or horn they have used for many years.

Food allergies, environmental allergies, or contact allergies can seemingly develop over night, and many cause tissue swelling or sensitivity. If a player's lip is affected, even microscopically, playing can be a nightmare.

Cindy Lewis
Sodium Lauryl Sulfate is the chemical found in most toothpastes which has been linked to lip swelling, although that doesn't mean a player's particular lip swelling isn't the result of a sensative to other additives in his toothpaste. You can try using plain baking soda [as an alternate toothpaste] for a few days if your regular toothpaste has been causing you a problem. There are some "natural" toothpastes [sold in health food stores] which do not contain Sodium Lauryl Sulfate and a toothpaste, available through your dentist, called Retar which also has no SLS. Most dentists advocate using a toothpaste with floride even for adults.
Cindy Lewis
Rembrandt makes a non SLS toothpaste which I believe has floride in it and can be found in drugstores and food stores.
Has anyone else noticed that Preparation H is great to combat lip swelling? Tastes *horrible* but boy, does it work. Maybe they should make a flavored version and call it Preparation L.

Just a thought......

Leslie Ann Lunsford
Has anyone else noticed that Preparation H is great to combat lip swelling?
Whilst appreciating the spirit in which this information has been forwarded to us, I cannot help but ask what it is that moved you (or whoever was the first to discover this treatment) to try applying to the lips a preparation which was so patently designed for application elswhere. It makes me wonder to what lengths one might go to find a cure for a playing engendered problem.

We can only salute your/his courage and rank you/him along with the man who discovered that sticking pins into various parts of one's body might produce a beneficial effect.

All the best,

Lawrence Yates
Hornists beware!

I too, had a lip swelling experience from using Arm&Hammer baking soda peroxide toothpaste similar to what Julia Pernic described. I called the toll-free phone number on the tube ( I had always wondered why the companies put them there?!?), and was reassured that the product in question had under gone rigorous testing before being marketed. I was and am sure to this day ,that the I was having an allergic response to the perooxide .A few days after discontinuing use of the product the swelling subsided. It would be nice for the companies to include some type of warning...maybe, caution if you play a brass instrument,may be hazardous to your playing!

Anyway,,,I did recieve a replacement coupon, and several dollars more toward future toothpaste purchases, avoiding of course anything which contains peroxide!

A.Whitman
Cindy Lewis writes:
So many products will cause minute lip swelling or irritation followed by short-term playing problems. I can't give you a complete list as of yet; however, some of the most common ingredients in toothpaste, for example, can cause lip swelling, mouth burning, and/or excessive salivation in some players...
I'd be interested in seeing that list when you're finished. About 6 months ago I had a very strange reaction after trying Crest Baking Soda and Peroxide toothpaste- it made my lips swell and the inside of my mouth peel. It wasn't painful but it sure was irritating and uncomfortable when I played. After 2 brushings or so I figured out what it was, stopped using it, and then I was fine. Does anyone know why that happened? Anyway, if you're a brass player and haven't tried a BS&P toothpaste I don't recommend it!
Julia Pernic
I had a similar experience last year with Colgate Baking Soda and Peroxide toothpaste, I recieved some very nasty mouth ulcers from using it. As the dedicated Chemistry student that I am, I figured out what the problem was: Both baking soda (or sodium bicarbonate) and peroxide (hydrogen peroxide) are both mildly strong bases, and the interior of most of the human body is an equilibrium system, that is, if a part of the body becomes too basic (like the inside of your mouth after using BS&P toothpaste), the system (your mouth) will adjust to correct the imbalance.

So, what was happening was that the inside of your mouth was producing extra acid to counteract the effects of the BS&P and thus caused nasty things to happen to the inside of your mouth (and your lips). I previously hadn't heard any other experiences like this and i had just put it down to a high sensitivity that I had. But apparently not.

Hope this has cleared up your confusion

Kat
Very interesting comments about toothpastes. Sodium Lauryl Sulfate is well know in the scientific community as having very harmful effects. Tests have shown that SLS can cause problems with eyesight and can cause development problems in small children. Tests on animals have also shown that it can cause depression. Also, there is proof out there that floride can cause cancer. The other frightening thing is that manufactureres put SLS in many other products such as shampoos and body lotions. There are some interetsing articles which I've found at www.neways.com in the products on demand section. They actually promote safe products and I actually use their toothpaste which contains no SLS and no floride.
Bilinda Siddall

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