Doramad Radioactive Toothpaste (''Doramad Radioaktive Zahncreme'') was a brand of

toothpaste Toothpaste is a paste or gel dentifrice that is used with a toothbrush to clean and maintain the aesthetics of Human tooth, teeth. Toothpaste is used to promote oral hygiene: it is an abrasive that aids in removing dental plaque and food from th ...

produced in Germany by

Auergesellschaft The industrial firm ''Auergesellschaft'' was founded in 1892 with headquarters in Berlin. Up to the end of World War II, ''Auergesellschaft'' had manufacturing and research activities in the areas of gas mantles, luminescence, rare earths, radioa ...

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

from the 1920s through

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. It was known for containing

thorium Thorium is a chemical element; it has symbol Th and atomic number 90. Thorium is a weakly radioactive light silver metal which tarnishes olive grey when it is exposed to air, forming thorium dioxide; it is moderately soft, malleable, and ha ...

, a

radioactive Radioactive decay (also known as nuclear decay, radioactivity, radioactive disintegration, or nuclear disintegration) is the process by which an unstable atomic nucleus loses energy by radiation. A material containing unstable nuclei is conside ...

metal, and is an example of

radioactive quackery Radioactive quackery is quackery that improperly promotes radioactive decay, radioactivity as a therapy for illnesses. Unlike radiotherapy, which is the science, scientifically sound use of radiation for the destruction of cell (biology), cells ...

Development

The toothpaste was slightly radioactive because it contained small amounts of thorium obtained from

monazite Monazite is a primarily reddish-brown phosphate mineral that contains rare-earth elements. Due to variability in composition, monazite is considered a group of minerals. The most common species of the group is monazite-(Ce), that is, the cerium ...

sands. Auergesellschaft used thorium and

rare-earth element The rare-earth elements (REE), also called the rare-earth metals or rare earths, and sometimes the lanthanides or lanthanoids (although scandium and yttrium, which do not belong to this series, are usually included as rare earths), are a set o ...

s in making industrial products including mantles for

gas Gas is a state of matter that has neither a fixed volume nor a fixed shape and is a compressible fluid. A ''pure gas'' is made up of individual atoms (e.g. a noble gas like neon) or molecules of either a single type of atom ( elements such as ...

lantern A lantern is a source of lighting, often portable. It typically features a protective enclosure for the light sourcehistorically usually a candle, a oil lamp, wick in oil, or a thermoluminescence, thermoluminescent Gas mantle, mesh, and often a ...

s; the toothpaste was produced as a

byproduct A by-product or byproduct is a secondary product derived from a production process, manufacturing process or chemical reaction; it is not the primary product or service being produced. A by-product can be useful and marketable or it can be cons ...

. Its radioactive content was promoted as imparting health benefits, including antibacterial action and a contribution to strengthening the "defenses of teeth and gums". According to the manufacturer's marketing materials, it was said to work due to the biological properties of the thorium increasing the circulation of the blood in the gums, destroying germs, and increasing the "life force" in the tissues of the mouth.

Claims

The company promised radiantly white teeth and bacterial extraction due to the ionizing radiation of the radioactive substances. The toothpaste was considered at the time a milestone of technical achievement and was touted as a "miracle remedy". At the time the damage caused by ionizing radiation was not known. Written on the packaging was:

''Besondere biologische Heilwirkungen durch Radium-Strahlen. Tausendfach ärztlich verordnet und empfohlen''.

''Special biological healing effects by radium rays. A thousand times medically prescribed and recommended.''

On the back of the toothpaste tube was the following:

''Was leistet Doramad? Durch ihre radioaktive Strahlung steigert sie die Abwehrkräfte von Zahn u. Zahnfleisch. Die Zellen werden mit neuer Lebensenergie geladen, die Bakterien in ihrer zerstörenden Wirksamkeit gehemmt. Daher die vorzügliche Vorbeugungs- und Heilwirkung bei Zahnfleischerkrankungen. Poliert den Schmelz aufs Schonendste weiß und glänzend. Hindert Zahnsteinansatz. Schäumt herrlich, schmeckt neuartig, angenehm, mild u. erfrischend. Ausgiebig im Gebrauch.''

''What does Doramad do? Through its radioactivity, it increases the defenses of teeth and gums. The cells are charged with a new vigorous life energy, which inhibits bacteria in their destructive ability. Hence the exquisite prevention and healing effect on gum diseases. Polishes enamel to the softest shiny white. Prevents tartar approach. Good foam, new taste, pleasant, mild and refreshing. Use extensively.''

World War II

During the

German military administration in occupied France during World War II The Military Administration in France (; ) was an Military Administration (Nazi Germany), interim occupation authority established by Nazi Germany during World War II to administer the occupied zone in areas of northern and western French Third ...

, a group of German scientists stole all the thorium they could while in occupied France. The Allied

Alsos Mission The Alsos Mission was an organized effort by a team of British and United States military, scientific, and intelligence personnel to discover enemy scientific developments during World War II. Its chief focus was to investigate the progress that ...

thought they were using the heavy elements for the refinement of

uranium Uranium is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. Ura ...

to be used in an

atomic bomb A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission or atomic bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear weapon), producing a nuclear expl ...

. However, after Allied agents captured and investigated a German chemical company's representative, it was revealed that the scientists were not seeking to develop an atomic bomb at all, but to make thorium toothpaste. According to physicist

Samuel Goudsmit Samuel Abraham Goudsmit (July 11, 1902 – December 4, 1978) was a Dutch-American physicist famous for jointly proposing the concept of electron spin with George Eugene Uhlenbeck in 1925. Life and career Goudsmit was born in The Hague, Ne ...

in a 1947 issue of ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'', the German chemical company's officials had realized that, at the end of the war, they would no longer be able to make money producing wartime equipment such as

gas mask A gas mask is a piece of personal protective equipment used to protect the wearer from inhaling airborne pollutants and toxic gases. The mask forms a sealed cover over the nose and mouth, but may also cover the eyes and other vulnerable soft ...

s or carbons for

searchlight A searchlight (or spotlight) is an apparatus that combines an extremely luminosity, bright source (traditionally a carbon arc lamp) with a mirrored parabolic reflector to project a powerful beam of light of approximately parallel rays in a part ...

s, and they decided cosmetic products would be their best option for future sales. One of the company's officials already had a patent for thorium toothpaste (likely unrelated to Doramad) and, influenced by marketing for

Pepsodent Pepsodent is an American brand of toothpaste with the minty flavor that is derived from sassafras. The brand was purchased by Unilever in 1942 and is still owned by the company outside of the United States and Canada. In 2003, Unilever sold the ...

"irium" toothpaste in the United States, the company sought to gain a monopoly on all the thorium they could find in order to produce as much thorium toothpaste as they could after the war, which led to the company's scientists stealing all of France's thorium. The identity and fate of the chemical company, the fate of the stolen thorium, and whether or not the thorium toothpaste was actually produced after the war is unknown.

References

{{reflist

External links

Gehes Codex der pharmazeutischen Spezialpräparate (1926)
Brands of toothpaste Oral hygiene Health in Germany Radioactive quackery Thorium Health in Nazi Germany

Development

Claims

World War II

See also

References

External links