Morphpaste

[Bill]

My old best friend from high school just patented his latest invention.
Howard was there when I had that training fight with Benny the Jet. We go back to grade school.


ST. LOUIS, Mo. _ A color-changing toothpaste invented by a St. Louis chemistry teacher aims to keep children brushing long enough to get their teeth clean while having fun with science.

Two stripes of primary color in Morphpaste mix in a child's mouth after 20 to 40 seconds, creating a vivid secondary color. Red and yellow yield orange. Yellow and blue turn to green. Blue and red make purple. Orange, lime and grape flavors complement the tints.

The product is made without a common foaming agent, which the inventor, Dr. Howard Wright, said can irritate tissue and does little to clean teeth. Because the toothpaste doesn't bubble up, young children have an easier time breathing through their mouths while brushing, he said.

Wright expects it to be produced without fluoride for young children, who tend to swallow toothpaste, and with fluoride for older children.

But don't look for Morphpaste on the retail shelves yet.

Wright got the patent in July, and he is working out the final details of a manufacturing and distribution deal with Zenith Dental Products, a New Jersey company.