P&G Shares New Oral Care Report

A new life cycle assessment (LCA) study by Procter & Gamble (P&G) Oral Care published in the Journal of Dentistry finds managing advanced periodontal disease can be associated with up to roughly 10 times higher environmental impact compared with maintaining periodontal health through at-home prevention.

The peer-reviewed paper, titled “Quantifying the Environmental Impact Potential from Periodontal Health to Disease: Findings from a Life Cycle Assessment Study,” for the first time quantifies the environmental burden associated with the presence of periodontal disease, its progression and the associated clinical care.

“What’s important about this LCA is that it places products in the real-world context of oral health, showing that prevention at home, and reducing high-impact clinical care, is where the biggest sustainability leverage sits,” said Professor Brett Duane, co-author, Honorary Professor at the University of Dundee and Associate Professor at Trinity College Dublin.

Developed by sustainability and oral health experts in collaboration with P&G, the ISO 14040/14044–compliant research applies a whole-system LCA lens to oral healthcare. This cycle quantifies environmental impacts across pathways from periodontal health through progressive gum disease, spanning both daily at-home prevention and in-clinic interventions.

Environmental Sustainability in Oral Healthcare

The environmental sustainability discussion in oral healthcare has largely focused on so-called ‘green’ products, waste and manufacturing. The study extends to full care pathways delivered by the profession and through at-home routines.

Clinical interventions account for roughly 90% of total environmental impact across the modeled periodontal pathway.

Within at-home routines, water use is the largest contributor; within the study’s parameters, no meaningful difference was observed between manual and electric toothbrushing routines for total at-home impact.

By linking oral health outcomes with care pathways, the study adds significant value to the concept of prevention, showing that effective at-home routines matter. Avoiding gum disease progression may reduce the need for more intensive, resource-heavy clinical interventions, benefiting patients, healthcare systems, society and the environment.

Alongside professional guidance (brush twice-daily for two minutes with fluoride toothpaste and clean between teeth), evidence indicates that powered toothbrushes not only reduce plaque and maintain better gum health in the short term, but those that work with oscillating-rotating technology also contribute to significant long-term benefits.

Globally, more than 1 billion people were living with severe periodontitis in 2021, based on analyses using Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2021 data. In England, the Adult Oral Health Survey (AOHS) 2023 found that 93% of adults with natural teeth had at least one sign of periodontal disease, and around 28% had early signs of gum breakdown, measured clinically as deeper spaces below the gum line (greater than 3.5 millimeters) where plaque can build up and problems often begin.

Industry Leadership Perspective

“Healthy habits at home matter, and using the right tools, can make prevention more effective,” said Michael Grief, senior vice president, R&D oral care, P&G. “Plaque builds up in hard-to-reach areas like along the gumline and between teeth, and better daily cleaning helps stop problems before they escalate.”

In a meta-analysis of more than 20 randomized clinical studies (over 2,600 participants, up to six months), 88% of people with early gum problems regained healthy gums using Oral-B iO. In fact, four times as many people returned to healthy gums using iO powered toothbrushes compared to a manual toothbrush.

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