Need a little pick-me-up while you brush?
Wish you could do more with less during that frenetic morning scramble? Step right up, because stuff just got real with this Colgate-Palmolive patent for a toothbrush that releases sweet, sweet caffeine directly into your mouth.
Imagine a toothbrush capable of dispensing a little something extra while you polish your choppers, drizzling the equivalent of a double-espresso with your toothpaste — or, you know, a numbing drug like benzocaine to soothe sore gums or a pesky cough. In fact C-P’s patent (noticed by Yahoo News) mentions all sorts of topical and consumable fun, from bursts of fruit-flavor (orange, strawberry, berry, grape, apple, mint, lemon, lime!) to herbal or nutritional supplements (aloe vera’s mentioned, as are lavender and chamomile) to somewhat weirder-sounding “communicative elements” like hot, cold or “tingle”-inducing materials. No, we’re not entirely sure what they’re getting at here, either.
To be fair, C-P’s patent isn’t the first we’ve heard of dental hygienics mixing it up with stimulants: a search for “caffeine toothpaste” turns up something called Buzz Toothpaste, “a peppermint-flavored, caffeinated toothpaste that packs the same punch as a cup of Starbucks coffee or a can of Mountain Dew.” Dig a little deeper and you’ll even find stuff like whiskey-flavored toothpaste (circa 1961, no less).