Village vignettes - Modermity Wins (Toothbrushes 2)

All my village children use only toothpastes. They go foaming at the mouth from home to home. Earlier they used to walk around chewing a neem toothstick, or piece of coal ...
Who is answerable for the village people getting pulled into these expensive and damaging habits ... ?
We and our lifestyles which makes the poor aspire for consumerism ?

The companies (composed of all the little cogs that make it run - the clerk and the MD) and the need for profits ?
Anantha Sayanan writes -
Aparna, its not just the sweet sugary lump that these pastes carry, they also ridden with nicotin as an addictive ( for repeat customers) and SLS for foaming! its best for our health and environments health to quit these wastes er pastes and brushes..that also saves dumping of so many plastic sachets and brushes by each of us..the alternative is any of the dantachoornam or tooth powders in ayur/sidddha marunth kadais..
That was from a study by the Delhi Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research (DIPSAR) which found that most of the toothpaste manufacturers were adulterating toothpastes and toothpowders with nicotine. that too high quantity..more nicotin than u get a few cigarettes. And it was all of them: dabur, herbal, vicco, neem tulsi and what not!! there are some other studies too!
That was in 2011-12 and was widely (i.e by us few crack pots in our small circles) publicised..people also heard, reacted, forgot and bought and dumped so many more sachets and brushes..but am proud some scores got converted bcos of us.. but??
Tendulkars and sharukhs told them (after taking crores)! - that is why we say, one golden rule for healthy life and safe food: avoid anything advertised!


Veena Padmanabhan And neem sticks and other ways of cleaning teeth are back in vogue - amongst those aspiring for a waste free life. But damage gets done as we all are told that paste and brush are modern and not datun or powder. Some 'new' pastes now come with coal!

 

Aparna Krishnan What was commonplace has become elite. To wait for the elite to transform and then that choice to percolate to the masses is a cycle we cannot afford. We need many many people moving to villages and staying there and living their lives and choices. One or two will not do. Our choices, living as their neighbours, were drowned in the racket of the TV ads and mainstream discourse. Finally my daughter was the only one in the village allowed only rita of shikai for her hair, or toothpowder and neem for her teeth.