How to choose a toothpaste for your child

You are standing at the pharmacy shelf looking at two dozen tubes with teddy bears and rainbows. One says "fluoride-free", another "with amine fluoride", a third "with hydroxyapatite", and all of them promise healthy teeth. This article is here so you can work it out once and choose with confidence, not at random.

In short. Under 3 years — a rice-grain smear of paste, after 3 — a pea. RDA up to 30 for toddlers and up to 50 for preschoolers. Fluoride is needed from the first tooth, in an age-appropriate dose. Hydroxyapatite and fluoride complement each other. SLS-free — especially if your child gets mouth ulcers.

Why a children's toothpaste is not a "smaller adult one"

Children's teeth have three features that change everything.

Immature enamel. Milk teeth erupt with thin, soft enamel that keeps mineralising for several more years. An abrasive that is too harsh wears away what nature has not yet had time to strengthen.
Children swallow paste. Until about 6–7 years of age children cannot spit properly and swallow part of the paste. That is why the concentration of active ingredients in children's pastes is strictly limited and the amount of paste is regulated.
Brushing does not last two minutes. In reality it is 30–45 seconds. This determines which form of fluoride has time to work.

Age is the main filter

0–2 years: first teeth. A very mild abrasive (RDA no higher than 30) and fluoride in an age-appropriate dose. A rice-grain amount of paste. In the LACALUT range this is Baby 0–2 (1000 ppm, RDA 28). If your toddler still swallows paste, there is Baby up to 4 — just 250 ppm of the amine fluoride Olaflur, which spreads over the enamel even during a short brush.

2–6 years: milk teeth under pressure. Caries in milk teeth is common, so you need 1000 ppm fluoride and mild surfactants instead of SLS. A pea-sized amount. Kids 2–6: Olaflur, hydroxyapatite and calcium glycerophosphate.

4–8 years: mixed dentition. Milk and permanent teeth stand side by side, and a freshly erupted permanent tooth is especially vulnerable — its enamel is still maturing. Kids 4–8 (500 ppm, RDA 30) is designed for exactly this period.

6 years and older. Once permanent teeth appear, dentists allow 1400–1450 ppm — practically an adult dose, while the abrasiveness stays child-friendly. Junior 6+, Teens 8+ and the 2026 novelty Teens 9–13.

RDA: a number that matters more than it seems

RDA is the abrasivity index. The higher the number, the more actively the paste removes plaque — and the harder it acts on enamel. For milk teeth the guidelines are:

Age	RDA no higher than	Example in the LACALUT range
0–2 years	30	Baby 0–2 — RDA 28; Baby up to 4 — RDA 20
2–6 years	40–50	Kids 2–6 — RDA 17–40
4–8 years	50	Kids 4–8 — RDA 30
8–13 years	60–70	Teens 8+ — RDA 40; Teens 9–13 — RDA 60

Look at the packaging: a children's toothpaste should state its RDA. If it does not, that is already a reason to think twice.

Fluoride: settle it once and for all

Fluoride does three things: it builds into the enamel and makes it more acid-resistant, slows the loss of minerals and speeds up their return. Toothpastes with 1000 ppm fluoride or more reduce caries increment in children compared with fluoride-free pastes — the conclusion of a 2019 Cochrane review. Belarus is a region with low fluoride in drinking water, so toothpaste is the main source of protection here.

Forms of fluoride differ in speed. Sodium fluoride (NaF) is reliable and well studied but needs contact time. Monofluorophosphate (MFP) is slower still: a salivary enzyme has to "unpack" it first. The amine fluoride Olaflur spreads over the enamel in the first seconds of brushing and stays on it longer — for a child who brushes for half a minute, this is the most practical option.

How much fluoride by age (European Academy of Paediatric Dentistry guidelines, 2019): from the first tooth to 2 years — 1000 ppm, a rice-grain amount; 2–6 years — 1000 ppm, a pea; from 6 years — 1450 ppm, a strip along the bristles. More on the fears around fluoride in "Fluoride: myths and facts".

Hydroxyapatite: do you need both?

Hydroxyapatite is the mineral enamel is mostly made of. In a toothpaste it builds into micro-defects and fills them. Fluoride strengthens existing enamel and makes it acid-resistant; hydroxyapatite helps repair damaged areas. They complement rather than compete — which is why LACALUT children's pastes contain both. Read more in "Hydroxyapatite and fluoride".

Surfactants and the rest of the formula: what to look at

SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate) is a foaming agent. Not harmful as such, but in some children it irritates the mucosa and may trigger mouth ulcers. LACALUT children's pastes do not contain it: mild surfactants are used instead, in several pastes Poloxamer 188.
Calcium carbonate (chalk) is undesirable in pastes for children under 6: it is a coarse abrasive.
Parabens and synthetic colourants are unnecessary for toddlers.
Xylitol is a useful addition: plaque bacteria cannot metabolise it.

Checklist: what a good children's toothpaste should have

Must have: age-appropriate RDA (up to 30 for toddlers, up to 50 for preschoolers); fluoride in the right concentration (1000 ppm under 6, 1400–1450 ppm older); fluoride form — NaF or, better still, the amine fluoride Olaflur; SLS-free. Nice to have: hydroxyapatite, xylitol. Avoid: calcium carbonate under 6, parabens, colourants.

And the main rule, which matters more than any formula: brush twice a day, supervised by an adult until 6–8 years of age, with an age-appropriate amount of paste — and do not rinse after brushing, just spit: that way fluoride stays on the enamel longer.

Toothpaste is a cosmetic product (TR CU 009/2011). This information is for reference only and does not replace a consultation with a doctor.