Limelight Toothy Tabs

I remember when I was little, the idea of brushing my teeth every night seemed like such a laborious task. Like the self-centred child that we all start out as, I didn't see the value of keeping my teeth clean, nor the purpose of 'wasting' two minutes of my life when I could have been dancing to Michael Jackson or watching Moonwalker for the millionth time. 

My parents did everything they could to make the task more enticing for my siblings and I - buying multi-flavoured toothpastes, investing in toothbrushes that sang and even building in games to distract us while we brushed away a day's worth of food. These toothy tabs remind me of a modern, adult version of this - except now I'm old enough to know better and I don't need to rely on any gimmicks to maintain my oral health. 

Limelight Toothy Tabs look like a bottle of sweets - not the sort of product you'd initially want to rely upon to keep your teeth clean. However, much like most of Lush's other toothpaste-alternatives, these won't stain your teeth or leave you with multiple cavities to deal with. 

Containing both lime and lemon oil, these tabs smell and taste very much like the outer shell of a chocolate lime - a sweet, zesty fruity aroma that takes a little getting used at first. While there's no mint in the ingredients list and it certainly doesn't taste like Lush have included any, there is a certain element about Limelight's taste that reminds me of the freshness you would expect from peppermint or spearmint. 

To use them you simply pop a tab into your mouth, crunch down using your front teeth, wet your toothbrush and begin to brush your teeth as normal. The powdery mixture reacts with the water and the cream of tartar creates a foam that freshens your mouth and cleans away any stubborn pieces of food that may be lingering around. Unlike some of Lush's other tabs I have tried, this one seemed to disintegrate very easily between my teeth and I didn't discover any stubborn pieces when I rinsed my mouth out afterwards. 

However, while the others produced quite a distinctive taste in the mouth - one that helped to eradicate bad breath and keep my mouth feeling clean for a good few hours after I had initially brushed, these ones didn't offer that same level coverage and I didn't feel as confident about the cleanliness of my teeth as I did when using the others.   

These particular tabs feature a number of ingredients that I was unsure about and had to research before trying them out for myself - not only to understand how and why any or all of Lush's toothy tab works, but also to educate others about the benefits they hold in this product; dicalcium phosphate anhydrous is the main ingredient in these toothy tabs and is a component used to help supplement the body's calcium intake, not to mention preventing the build up of tartar in the mouth; sorbitol is a natural alternative to sugar, which allows Lush to add flavour to this product without adding anything that'll rot your teeth; Lauroyl Sarcosine not only helps the product to foam up in the mouth, but is also used to remove unwanted bacteria that may cause problems in the future.

Limelight also features Kaolin, which sounds strange as you wouldn't automatically suggest using clay to brush your teeth with. However, the small dosage in these tabs helps to purify and clean away stubborn dirt and leave them with a shine to rival any main brand of toothpaste on the market. 

While these tabs won't leave you with amazingly minty-fresh breath, and this may be something you'll have to get used to, it does leave a pleasant taste on the palette and provides you with clean-feeling teeth. My only grouch would be that the effect of these tabs isn't as long-lasting as other variations from Lush, and for that reason, they wouldn't be my number one choice for future purchases.  

This bottle provides you with enough tabs to see you through a good 1-2 months. Although it works out a little more expensive than the tooth paste varieties you can buy in your local pharmacist, I really love the fact that Lush offer such a strange but equally interesting range of 'flavours' for you to try, and the price is on par with most vegan alternatives that I have been able to find so far. 

Quantitative Ingredients: Dicalcium Phosphate Anhydrous, Sodium Bicarbonate, Cream Of Tartar (Potassium bitartrate), Lauroyl Sarcosine, Sorbitol, Kaolin, Lime Oil (Citrus aurantifolia), Lemon Oil (Citrus limonum), Almond Oil (Prunus dulcis), Baobab Fruit Powder (Adansonia digitata), Gardenia Extract (Gardenia jasminoldes), Citric Acid, Silica, Malic Acid, Sodium saccharin, Flavour, Frosty Holly Lustre (Potassium aluminium silicate, Titanium Dioxide, Colour 19140, Colour 42090), Citral, Limonene. 

Vegan?: Yes.

2015 Price: £4.95 each.

Year Of Original Release: 2015.