Why Does Orange Juice Taste So Bad After Brushing Our Teeth

The culprit for this offensive reaction is Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, the foaming agent found in almost all toothpastes.

Orange juice tastes good because it is a delicate balance of sweet natural sugars along with the bitterness of acid. Sodium Lauryl Sulfate suppresses the sweet taste buds on our tongues. This creates an unbalanced situation where only the bitterness of the juice’s acid can be tasted.

To make things even worse, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate destroys Phospholipids. These fatty compounds usually inhibit our bitter taste buds. Normally these sour receptors are somewhat muted and the sweetness of the sugars prevails.

By inhibiting sweet receptors and destroying Phospholipids, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate dulls the sweetness while allowing us to taste the bitterness of orange juice.