About 2 years ago my dentist told me that if my gums in one area of my mouth didn't clear up by my next cleaning, that I would need to get some procedure done. Since that day I've been using  Eco-Dent powder and have had no more gum issues!
 

I have a lifetime supply of tooth powder called Dentifice. It works very well on teeth and I’ve no gum problems. I don’t know what’s in it because the rest of the writing is in Urdu. I bought it years ago in a NYC dollar store. I liked it so much, I went back and bought all of it. The store was a one of a kind run by Pakistanis. If it hasn’t killed me yet, I guess it’s alright. I still need to get some teeth fixed because of pre-Dentifice problems. I’m a problematic patient as I have an overbite that does NOT cause problems and I have latex allergy, novacaine allergy, and a hairtrigger gag reflex. IOW, I need to be knocked out for any but very basic care. All you get is dentists who do cosmetic dentistry. They want to do extensive surgery to correct the overbite, trim off resulting “excess” gums and palate, and give me a full set of porcelain implants. Sorry, but everyone even if I had the $250,000 and two-three years to dedicate to my teeth, I don’t want surgeries or movie star teeth only to be buried! They’ll outlast me even if I live to 100! I’ll be happy with a few caps and a bridge.

Oh, wow!  This makes me wonder if tooth powder was originally more common and toothpaste a more modern thing.

Yes, it was. I know that from my parents and grandparents. During the Depression, people used salt or baking soda for tooth powder. Mom was quite poor as a child, so they didn’t go to dentists.  If a tooth got really nasty, you washed your mouth out with alcohol or witch hazel water or vinegar, then grandma pulled it with string and pliers. You just did without.

Not for me! I’d prefer the amateur dentist get me drunk or hit me with a rubber mallet. Or he’s got to be REALLY fast!