Meet the Creators of Fygg
This is the Fygg story.
Fygg’s founders started with a few truths: most toothpaste contains harsh chemicals that can negatively impact our oral microbiomes, and research shows a connection between oral microbiome health and a person's whole-body health.
Years of research and development later, Fygg Toothpaste was born. A hydroxyapatite-based toothpaste that is free from fluoride, emulsifiers, surfactants, essential oils and every other harsh, unnecessary ingredient. Fygg products were designed with the principle of removing unnecessary ingredients, and instead using natural, supportive ingredients that will nourish, not harm, your oral microbiome.
Fygg’s three founders care deeply about providing clean, natural, premium oral health products. Learn more about their individual paths and how Fygg came to be in their stories below.
Dr. Mark Burhenne
“My entire career, I’ve been frustrated with the toothpaste options on the market. I was given the nickname "Mr. Consumer Reports" in dental school for my obsession with researching everything from toothpaste to stereos to car seat safety.
Even hydroxyapatite toothpaste had ingredients I did not stand behind—like emulsifiers, surfactants, and essential oils. I emailed manufacturers and urged them to make a new kind of toothpaste—something remineralizing but also oral microbiome-nourishing—but no one wanted to do it. They said it was impossible.”
Dr. Staci Whitman
“After losing both of my parents to preventable disease at early ages, I began questioning a lot with our current medical system, how our environment and daily exposures play a role in our health, and how patients were not getting the appropriate support and answers they need to thrive. Over time, I began practicing dentistry with a different perspective, creating a new practice model and looking for a more root-cause and upstream approach. I decided to pursue pediatrics for this reason: to help children thrive before they had chronic health issues or dental disease.
I met Dr. B in 2020, and he has been a dear friend and mentor ever since. We connected over our frustrations with the non-stop drill, fill, bill dental model and how it wasn’t the answer patients needed. With dental disease still the number one chronic disease globally, we knew there were better answers and approaches.
Over the past several years, we have had the chance to talk a lot about my concerns with what I saw in my pediatric patients. Kids seemingly getting sicker and sicker, with few doctors talking about the real underlying reasons. One issue: lack of quality oral healthcare products that addressed the root causes of issues, didn't have unnecessary ingredients, and also had transparency to the public. Dr. B told me—"you know, Staci, we can do something better." And this was when the idea for Fygg was born!
Catharine Burhenne
“As a new mom of two, and with a dad for a dentist, I’m acutely aware of the lack of dental education for new parents and what I call, ‘the nightly brushing battle.’” Knowing what I knew from building Ask the Dentist, I was frustrated that there weren’t better options for my babies–even the toothpaste that my dad recommended, he acknowledged, was “a compromise.”
After my daughter was hospitalized with a kidney infection and had to undergo months of IV antibiotic treatment, I threw myself into the research for microbiome health. No surprise, but the oral microbiome was at the front and center of that research, and reestablishing and nourishing a healthy oral microbiome for my daughter was critical after she recovered from surgery.
We all chose the name Fygg because we dreamt of starting a movement. “Feed Your Good Guys” is a call to action for all of us to think differently about our mouths and oral health. The oral microbiome has always been an afterthought—until now!”