Testing Botao Grow Naturally Baby Strawberry-Flavored Fluoride-free Toothpaste for Lead, Mercury, Cadmium, & Arsenic Using Independent (Community-Funded), Third-Party Laboratory Testing
Published March 25, 2025 — Tuesday
A Quick Note from Tamara Rubin:
This Botao Grow Naturally Baby Fluoride-free Toothpaste (pictured above, in Strawberry Flavor) tested positive for a not insignificant amount of Lead when Lead Safe Mama, LLC sent the product to a laboratory for independent, third-party, community-funded testing. This is an EWG Verified product. Please continue reading below the screenshot from EWG’s website (captured today, 3/25/2025).
Please scroll down to see both the shareable social media graphic with the test results for this product and the full original lab report. As is true with all our articles discussing and reporting the lab results for different products, the full original report can be found at the very bottom of the article.
Our comparative chart for toothpaste and tooth powder products (which does not yet include this product but will be updated shortly) is above, near the top of the article. This product falls between D and E on that chart — organized by the amount of Lead found through the independent, community-funded, third-party laboratory testing Lead Safe Mama, LLC conducts.
As with several of the toothpaste brands we are reporting on today, many Lead Safe Mama community members were expecting (and hoping) this would be a cleaner toothpaste (coming back from the lab with “non-detect” readings for each toxicant we test for) — given the marketing and branding/ language and imagery used to sell this product (and especially given it is “EWG Verified” as well as specifically made for infants!) — so I expect these findings are a significant disappointment for some. Due to the fact EWG has granted high ratings to many Lead-contaminated personal care products, we were not surprised by these test results.
It is not impossible to make a toothpaste for children that tests “non-detect” for Lead! We have found five toothpaste examples so far that tested “non-detect” for Lead (four are not yet labeled on the chart above, but are listed below). Four of these five toothpastes are marketed for use by children.
- As always (to repeat what has become a bit of a mantra here at Lead Safe Mama, LLC), all federal agencies agree there is no safe level of Lead exposure for human beings (especially pregnant women and children).
- Serving size does not matter when we are talking about toxicants as potent and dangerous as Lead, Cadmium, and Mercury.
- Lead and other heavy metals bioaccumulate in the body over time — especially with persistent, chronic/ daily exposure.
- When a product positive for unsafe levels of toxicants (heavy metals) is used two or three times a day for YEARS by the same individual (as many toothpastes are), the presence of toxicants in that product becomes a very real risk to the user.
- The fact there is an oral ingestion and absorption pathway when using toothpaste is also — of course — extra concerning (vs. other non-oral-use cosmetic products).
Please scroll to the bottom of the page to see the full original lab report for this product. For more context related to any of the levels on the chart below, please refer to our earlier toothpaste articles as well as this page, which will always have the most recent update of our comparative chart with test results for all of the toothpaste and tooth powder products we have tested to date (this is a good page to bookmark and check back on periodically)!
IMPORTANT: The toxicant levels found in this toothpaste are 100% LEGAL.
In other words, the toxicant levels we found in this toothpaste are NOT illegal.
This is because Fluoride-free toothpaste is classified by the FDA as a cosmetic product. Cosmetic products are legally allowed to have up to 10,000 parts per billion (ppb) Lead in them (10,000 ppb is the same as 10 ppm). The new (January 2025) Washington State Toxic-Free Cosmetic Act limits the amount of Lead in cosmetics to 1,000 ppb (1 ppm). So, the only two applicable total content standards for Lead (that are not serving size-based, given serving size-based standards are irrelevant when evaluating the concern for Lead exposure with any given product) result in all relevant regulatory standards considering this product fully legal.
Just because something is LEGAL does not mean it is ok nor that it is actually safe for children or pregnant women. Current regulatory standards were designed primarily to protect corporations from liability, not to protect human health (watch our documentary film linked here for more context).
Despite this product being LEGAL per current FDA regulatory standards, Lead Safe Mama, LLC is supporting the FDA by reporting these toothpaste toxicant levels (for all of the toothpaste and tooth powder testing that results positive for toxicants) via the FDA’s online complaint form. Our goal is for the FDA to take action with this new product-specific/ brand-specific body of evidence and possibly propose new (much lower) toxicant thresholds/ limits for toothpaste — ESPECIALLY for toothpastes and tooth powder products marketed for young children or products used by women of childbearing age/ pregnant women.
- If your child has been using this toothpaste and you have concerns related to the potential health impacts from this product (or if your child has tested positive for low levels of Lead exposure and you have not been able to identify the exposure source prior to reading this article), you may want to stop using the product immediately.
- For alternatives, we have found a few safer toothpaste choices (five now!) — products that tested non-detect for Lead, Cadmium, Mercury, and Arsenic with independent, third-party laboratory testing — and those can be seen in the list below. Just scroll down!
- Ask your doctor if they can order a blood Lead level test for your child to rule out any potential significant exposure (more on that here).
- You may also want to consider getting a full heavy metals panel (not just a blood Lead test) — more on that here.
- Most food-based/ toothpaste-based toxicant exposure will not be detectable with typical blood Lead testing (as the low thresholds of detection for blood Lead testing are typically too high to show the lower levels of exposure caused by sources like toothpaste), but it is good to have a baseline if your child has not yet been tested (as a basis for comparison with any future testing you may choose to do).
- With persistent chronic exposure from a source like Lead-contaminated toothpaste, we have seen Blood Lead Levels (BLLs) in the range of 1.0 to 4.0 micrograms of Lead per deciliter of blood (depending on the contamination of the toothpaste product).
- Most doctors today only take action if a child’s BLL is 3.5 or higher (due to a common misunderstanding of the current CDC guidance) but lower levels are still concerning (and have been repeatedly demonstrated to cause life-long health complications — more on that here, and here).
- Also complicating the concern, many BLL tests only measure down to a low threshold of detection of 3.3.
- You can also file a report with the FDA, here.
- I would not personally allow my own children to use this product, as any known/ identified sources of potential Lead-exposure are a strict and firm “no” in our home.
If you are interested in knowing more about detox protocols to support your family’s health (in response to learning this new information about toothpaste toxicant concerns), please read this article first — here’s the link. Most detox protocols and potions sold are hoaxes (ineffective or even dangerous) that are a waste of money and can often result in additional Lead exposure for your family.
The full lab report for this product is at the bottom of this article.
As far as safer choices for foods, supplements, and cosmetics go (including toothpastes), we have a few lists on our food and supplement testing landing page (linked here) that you may find helpful in making safer choices for your family. We even have one dedicated to safer snack choiceshere. You may also find this link helpful as it takes you to our most recently updated safer choices list of 61 lab-tested safer foods, cosmetics, and supplements!
Here’s the link to our landing page with ALL of the lab reports for the independent, third-party laboratory testing Lead Safe Mama, LLC has coordinated since March of 2024 — this is also a good page to bookmark and check back on periodically (it is always pinned at the top of the website’s Menu via the button graphic below, and the Menu can be found at the top of every page on this site).
For those new to the Lead Safe Mama website:
Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her four sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005).
- Tamara owns and runs Lead Safe Mama, LLC — a unique community collaborative woman-owned small business for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety.
- Since July 2022, the work of Lead Safe Mama, LLC has been responsible for six product recalls (FDA and CPSC).
- All test results reported on this website are science-based, accurate, and replicable.
- Please check out our press page to see some of the news coverage of our work, linked here.
This is an ad-free article.
Advertising and affiliate income help Lead Safe Mama, LLC cover the costs of the work we do here (independent consumer goods testing and childhood Lead poisoning prevention advocacy). We have removed ads from most of our more widely-read articles (and newly published articles, too — like this one!) to make them easier for you to read. In addition to supporting this work by starting any shopping you might be doing with a click on our affiliate links, if you would like to support the independent consumer goods testing and childhood Lead poisoning prevention advocacy of Lead Safe Mama, LLC by making a contribution (which will also help us keep our more widely-read articles ad-free), click here. Thank you!
Are you interested in seeing MORE safer choices?
Below is an expanding list of products (foods, supplements, cosmetics, and personal care items) that tested “non-detect” for Lead, Mercury, Cadmium, and Arsenic with independent, third-party, community-funded laboratory testing coordinated by Lead Safe Mama, LLC (an Oregon-based small business with a unique community-collaborative business model and a focus on consumer goods safety and childhood Lead poisoning prevention). The product examples below clearly demonstrate that companies can manufacture safer choices (at least from the perspective of a concern for heavy metals contamination).
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The limits of detection (low-threshold of detection) for each of the metals tested are noted in the lab report for the specific product listed. To see the full original lab report for any of these products, type the brand name into the search bar at the top of any page on Lead Safe Mama dot com (and scroll down to the bottom of the related article). All our published lab reports are also linked here, on our lab testing landing page.
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Flavors (or specific variations) tested are noted, and other flavors of the same product (or other products from the same brand) have either not been tested or have been tested but did not yield similar results. Test results only apply to the specific products linked below.
Products on our “safer choices” list are retested periodically (annually or more frequently, as funding permits). If a product no longer tests clean, it is removed from the list.
LIST UPDATED — June 4, 2025
Now at 68 products + 6 “bonus” options. Scroll down to see all 74 Lab-tested Safer Choices:
- Baby Food — 1 — Little Spoon Kale, Carrot + Pear BabyBlends
- Baby Food — 2 —Little Spoon Butternut Squash + Blueberry BabyBlends
- Baby Food — 3 — Little Spoon Sweet Potato BabyBlends
- Baby Food — 4 — Little Spoon Sweet Potato + Carrot BabyBlends
- Baby Food — 5 — Little Spoon Banana + Pitaya BabyBlends
- Beverage — 1 — Honest Kids Organic Appley Ever After Apple Juice Drink: https://amzn.to/4fjGhov
- Beverage — 2 — Olipop Grape Tonic: https://amzn.to/4cjFYZu
- Breakfast Cereal — 1 — Nature’s Path Envirokidz Organic Panda Puffs: https://amzn.to/4fo1crf
- Breakfast Cereal — 2 — Nature’s Path Envirokidz Organic Corn Puffs Gorilla Munch: https://amzn.to/3FHZCDO
- Candy — 1 — Cavendish & Harvey Wild Berry Drops, not organic (Germany): https://amzn.to/3Z1Jxjr
- NEW! Candy — 2 — Haribo Gummy Bears** (Made in Germany, Not USA Produced): https://amzn.to/3FCGVlu
- Candy — 3 — Lindt White Chocolate Bar (Made in USA, New Hampshire): https://amzn.to/3OXkyIm
- Coffee & Tea — 1 — Chameleon Handcrafted Organic Cold Brew Concentrate: https://amzn.to/3OcrH77
- Coffee & Tea — 2 —Tao of Tea Organic Genmaicha (Tamara’s favorite, from Japan, sold by a Portland, Oregon-based company!): https://amzn.to/3Dp8Fsd
- Coffee & Tea — 3 — Califia Farms Almond Latte Cold Brew (XX Espresso): https://amzn.to/4gTTGoJ
- Coffee & Tea — 4 — Death Wish Organic Espresso Roast Ground Coffee (Multi-country origin, non-USA): https://amzn.to/3yo1eiL
- Cosmetic— 1 — Babo Botanicals Sensitive Baby Lotion: https://amzn.to/3YmKxy1
- Cosmetic — 2 — Kora Organics Noni Face Oil: https://amzn.to/43hy2XO
- Dairy — 1 — (cheese) — Babybel Mini Original Snack Cheese: https://amzn.to/3ZY5noO
- Dairy — 2 — (coffee creamer) — Organic Valley Grassmilk Half and Half: https://amzn.to/4fHJIWT
- Fruit Snack — 1 — (bar) — Pure Organic Layered Fruit Bars in Raspberry Lemonade Flavor: https://amzn.to/3XcFsIp
- Fruit Snack — 2 — (bar) —Pure Organic Layered Fruit Bars in Strawberry Banana Flavor: https://amzn.to/3WQEekA
- Fruit Snack — 3 — (pouch) — Costco’s Kirkland Organic Apple Sauce Pouch: https://amzn.to/4gOYpZ9
- Fruit Snack — 4 — (pouch) — GoGo Squeez Organic Apple Sauce Pouch: https://amzn.to/3XhWYLe
- Fruit Snack — 5 — (pouch) — Once Upon A Farm Dairy Free Fruit Smoothie Pouch in Strawberry Banana Swirl Flavor: https://amzn.to/3CPMbAw
- Infant Formula — 1 — Bobbie Organic Gentle Infant Formula Milk-Based Powder with Iron (pink and white can): https://amzn.to/3YYb849
- Infant Formula — 2 — Bobbie Organic Infant Formula Milk-Based Powder with Iron (green and white can): https://amzn.to/3VOr4Vy
- Infant Formula — 3 — Bobbie Grass-Fed Milk-Based Powder with Iron (green can): https://amzn.to/3ZlAaeJ
- Infant Formula — 4 — ByHeart Infant Formula (USA-made, not organic): https://amzn.to/48DJjTb
- Infant Formula — 5 — HiPP Bio Combiotik Infant Formula Powder, Stage 1 (imported)
- Infant Formula — 6 — HiPP HA Stage PRE (0+ Months) Combiotic Formula (imported)
- Infant Formula — 7 — Holle Bio Goat Stage 2 Infant Formula (for 6-10 months, organic, European — Swiss/ German/ Austrian) is not available on Amazon, but the Stage 3 version of this product is (not yet tested, but will likely test similarly): https://amzn.to/3BVU7zI
- Infant Formula — 8 — Kendamil Goat Infant Formula (not organic): This product may be available at Target (it is not available on Amazon)
- Infant Formula — 9 — Kendamil Organic Follow-On Milk (European/ British Toddler Formula, for 6-12 months, Cow Milk): Not available on Amazon
- Infant Formula — 10 — Kendamil Whole Milk Infant Formula (from Europe, pink can, not organic), available at Target
- Infant Formula — 11 — Kendamil Organic Infant Formula (Cow Milk): Not available on Amazon but may be available at Target
- Ingredient — 1 — (baking flour) — Jovial Organic Einkorn Flour (Italy): https://amzn.to/3LIqxix
- Ingredient — 2 — (beans) — Jovial Organic Chickpeas, Product of Italy: https://amzn.to/4iRON1l
- Ingredient — 3 — (vinegar) — Napa Valley Naturals Organic Red Wine Vinegar (California): https://amzn.to/4jWhHOg
- Oil — 1 — (avocado) — Chosen Foods 100% Avocado Oil (not organic): https://amzn.to/3YDZSuv
- Oil — 2 — (coconut) — Dr. Bronner’s Regenerative Organic Coconut Oil: https://amzn.to/40xwBmv
- NEW! Oil — 3 — (olive) — Bryan Johnson BluePrint Snake Oil Olive Oil** (not organic): https://amzn.to/4mMieUj
- Oil — 4 — (perilla seed) — Dr. Adorable’s Organic Perilla Seed Oil (Korea): https://amzn.to/3NDt7Yc
- Plant-Based Milk — 1 — (coffee creamer) — Laird Superfood Coconut Creamer: https://amzn.to/4fItA7A
- Plant-Based Milk — 2 — (plant milk) — Kiki Milk Organic Plant-Based Milk (original flavor): https://amzn.to/3AA6Qrt
- Plant-Based Milk — 3 — (soy milk) — West Soy Unflavored Unsweetened Organic Soy Milk: https://amzn.to/4dwev8l
- Salt — 1 — Jacobsen’s Sea Salt (Oregon, USA): https://amzn.to/4dcbk5L
- NEW! Salt — 2 —Maldon Sea Salt Flakes**: https://amzn.to/4iTzWTE
- NEW! Salt — 3 — Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt** : https://amzn.to/4cVQMiy
- Seeds — 1 — (chia) —Navitas Organic, Gluten-Free Chia Seeds (Mexico): https://amzn.to/3YvE7xC
- Seeds — 2 — (hemp) — Costco Kirkland Organic Hemp Seeds: https://amzn.to/4e05RP9
- Supplement — 1 — (adult) — Doctor’s Best Vitamin C with Q-C: https://amzn.to/4hlVvea
- Supplement — 2 — (adult) —Nordic Naturals Omega-3 Fish Oil: https://amzn.to/48q1j2V
- Supplement — 3 — (adult) — Pectasol Modified Citrus Pectin, Formulated in the USA: https://amzn.to/3QUmZfN
- Supplement — 4 — (adult) — Pendulum Metabolic Daily Dietary Supplement: https://amzn.to/4gY5wOm
- Supplement — 5 — (kids) —Baby Ddrops, Organic Vitamin D3 Supplement for Babies: https://amzn.to/49C3ktH
- Supplement — 6 — (kids) — Mary Ruth’s Organic Toddler Multivitamin Liquid Drops with Iron: https://amzn.to/3YPhcgx
- Supplement — 7 — (kids) —Mary Ruth’s Organic Toddler Elderberry Liquid Drops: https://amzn.to/42617TU
- Supplement — 8 — (kids) — Nordic Naturals Kids Vitamin D3 Gummies (Ages 3+): https://amzn.to/4l7117a
- Sweetener — 1 — (sugar) — Anthony’s Organic Granulated Cane Sugar: https://amzn.to/4jf6vLv
- Sweetener — 2— (xylitol) — Espure Organic Xylitol: https://amzn.to/3GsCSrU
- Sweetener — 3— (xylitol) —Now Real Food Granulated Xylitol: https://amzn.to/4cNWDpM
- Toothpaste — 1 — Fluoride-free Orajel Kids Training Toothpaste in Natural Berry Fruity Flavor with Elmo Sesame Street Packaging: https://amzn.to/41wxtrY
- Toothpaste — 2 — Fluoride-free Miessence Mint Toothpaste: https://amzn.to/4bJc4PO
- Toothpaste — 3 — Dr. Brown’s Fluoride-free Baby Toothpaste in Strawberry Flavor: https://amzn.to/3DCehzZ
- Toothpaste — 4 — Pegciz Kids Foam Toothpaste in Watermelon Flavor, Low Flouride (packaging varies, see report): https://amzn.to/3YzP68e
- Toothpaste — 5 — Kid’s Spry Fluoride-free Tooth Gel with Xylitol in Original Flavor: https://amzn.to/41GZb4e
- Toothpaste — 6 — Fluoride-free Essential Oxygen BR Certified Organic in Peppermint Flavor: https://amzn.to/4lARZ2J
**Lab reports pending/ Not yet published as of 6/4/2025
Here’s a link to our landing page featuring all the third-party lab reports for the foods, supplements, and cosmetic products we have published to date, including those listed above: https://tamararubin.com/2024/05/food-articles/
Stand by for more!
BONUS: Below are SIX additional products that each tested positive for trace (very low levels of) Arsenic — at levels considered safe by all standards (with the limits of detection noted in the lab report for the specific product listed).
- Infant Formula — Kendamil Goat Toddler Milk, not organic (positive for traces of Arsenic): May be available at Target or through other online retailers of European infant formulas
- Ingredient — Maseca Instant Corn Masa Flour, Product of Mexico (positive for traces of Arsenic): https://amzn.to/4iR8qWN
- Fruit Snack — That’s It Apple Cherry Bars, not organic (positive for traces of Arsenic): https://amzn.to/4fHkSWV
- Oil — Chosen Foods 100% Pure Avocado oil, organic (postive for traces of Arsenic): https://amzn.to/3BVQYQa
- Supplement — (adult) — Now Sunflower Lecithin, not organic (positive for traces of Arsenic): https://amzn.to/3AFdHzO
- Supplement — (adult) — WishGarden Immune Boost Seasonal Rescue for Pregnancy: https://amzn.to/3Cd940N
Amazon links are affiliate links.
Amazon links are affiliate links. If you purchase something after clicking on a Lead Safe Mama, LLC Amazon affiliate link, Lead Safe Mama, LLC may receive a percentage of what you spend, at no extra cost to you.
Lab report for the product pictured above:
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