Your Toothbrush Could Soon Dispense Caffeine


Do you need caffeine in the morning, but hate the taste of coffee after you brush your teeth? Well, soon there could be a toothbrush for that.

Colgate-Palmolive recently filed a patent application for a toothbrush that can deliver a dose of chemicals to the user. While a number of medicines could be distributed to the toothbrusher, the idea appears to have taken off in the direction of caffeine.

In the application, the company explains that a chemical-dispensing toothbrush could have many uses that can “invoke a sensory response” during use.

Illustrations of the concept show tongue cleaners on the back of the brush’s head, which indicate what chemical or medicine the toothbrush contains.

While the prospect of brushing with a caffeinated toothbrush is enough to sell the concept on most coffee addicts, the concept has wider uses. The brush could be used to dispense a painkiller, a cooling sensation, or even a warming sensation. It can also dispense flavors, like apple and mint.

Also interesting, the chemical-dispensing toothbrush will have a “diet” option, meaning a patch that would include an appetite suppressant.

But even if the patent is approved by the US patent office and Colgate-Palmolive goes on to release the sensory toothbrush, the company could run into issues with the FDA over a caffeine toothbrush.

The FDA announced in late April their plans to investigate the safety of added caffeine, particularly what the impact is of “new and easy sources.” The investigation focuses on caffeine’s impact on the health of children and adolescents.

The news of a caffeine toothbrush patent application also comes the week after Wrigley’s Alert Energy Caffeine Gum was pulled from store shelves. The company explained that the halt in production is temporary while the FDA conducts its investigation into the safety of caffeine.

It is likely that Colgate-Palmolive’s toothbrush laced with caffeine will face the same scrutiny.

[Image via ShutterStock]

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