# TUNG ## Facts | | | |---|---| | Founded | 1997 | | Origin | United States | | Headquarters | Sarasota, Florida | | Owner | Peak Enterprises, Inc. | | Status | Active | | Previous names | Dr. Wieder's Original Tung-Brush (1997 product naming in trade press) | | Manufacturing | United States (Tennessee, Wisconsin, Ohio, New York, Chicago, Florida), Toronto (Canada) | | Website | https://www.tungbrush.com/ | TUNG is an American oral-care brand built around a single idea: cleaning the tongue. Its core products are the TUNG Brush, a short-bristled brush shaped for the surface of the tongue, and TUNG Gel, a mint cleansing gel meant to be used with it. The brand was created by a dentist, Dr. Wieder, and the entrepreneur Tom Oechslin, and it belongs to their company, Peak Enterprises, Inc., which trades as Peak Essentials and is based in Sarasota, Florida [2][5]. Unlike most oral-care brands, TUNG makes no toothpaste, toothbrush or mouthwash. Its whole range is organised around the argument that bacteria on the tongue, rather than the teeth, are the main source of bad breath, and that tongue cleaning deserves a place next to brushing and flossing in a daily routine. The brand remains active, with a maintained website and a product line that has grown to include a natural-formula gel and a version for children. ## Origin & founders The company's account of its beginnings centres on Dr. Wieder's time in dental practice. According to TUNG, he was closely attentive to his patients' oral health and aware of the social toll that bad breath took on them. Together with Oechslin, he concluded that nothing on the market could clean the back of the tongue effectively without setting off the gag reflex. The two set out to solve that problem, and the first TUNG Brush and TUNG Gel came out of that partnership [2]. The company's own website does not give a founding date. Its homepage looks back on "2 decades of adventure" since the idea for a new kind of tongue cleaner, and describes the start of the venture as a risky, uncertain climb. Dr. Wieder's first name is not given in the company's materials. The name of the company carries the same image. According to the brand's About page, the founders chose "Peak Enterprises" because they knew that entering the US and international oral-care market against much larger competitors would take determination and perseverance, and would be a climb. ## Ownership TUNG is owned by Peak Enterprises, Inc., the operating company set up by its two founders. The company also uses the trading name Peak Essentials, and the brand's two flagship products are registered trademarks of Peak Enterprises under the names "Peak Essentials The Original TUNG Brush" and "Peak Essentials The Original TUNG Gel" [1]. Company press material places Peak Enterprises in Sarasota, Florida. The brand is not part of a larger consumer-goods group, and no acquisitions or changes of ownership are documented. Peak Enterprises describes itself in modest terms, as "not the biggest consumer products company, just a very committed one". ## Philosophy & positioning TUNG's positioning rests on a claim it repeats across its website: that 90% of bad breath comes from the tongue. The company explains this through biofilms, the dense, sticky colonies of bacteria that settle into the grooves and crevices of the tongue's uneven surface. On its science page, TUNG states that these colonies are 1,500 times more tolerant of antibacterial agents than bacteria not living in colonies, and argues that mouthwashes therefore tend to mask odour rather than remove its cause [4]. In the company's view, scrubbing the bacteria away by hand is the effective response. From that premise the brand builds a simple routine, which it summarises as "brush, floss, brush… your tongue". It addresses dentists and hygienists directly on its homepage, describing tongue cleaning as an emerging third step in daily oral care and presenting the brush and gel as tools patients will actually use. The tagline "Healthy Tongue – Healthy Breath – Healthy Life" ties the product to wider health, and the company's pages link the same bacteria to gum disease, which it says research has connected with heart disease and other serious conditions. Much of the brand's messaging is also a case against the alternatives. TUNG argues that ordinary toothbrushes are poorly suited to the tongue, since their long, soft bristles bend flat and push plaque around, and their tall, narrow heads trigger gagging near the back of the mouth. It describes tongue scrapers as skimming over the surface without reaching the crevices, and says toothpaste is too sticky and can irritate the tongue. Manufacturing is the other pillar of the company's identity. Peak Enterprises says it insists on making TUNG products in the United States "because we believe in America", and that it prefers to compete on quality and service rather than on price with overseas producers. Its About page lists the makers it works with in Tennessee, Wisconsin, Ohio, New York, Chicago and Florida, and also in Toronto, Canada [2]. ## Products & innovation The **TUNG Brush** is the centre of the range. The company describes it as designed by a dentist for the anatomy of the tongue, with short, firm bristles that work through the sticky film on the tongue's surface, and a low-profile, wide head meant to reach the back of the tongue without causing gagging. Users are told to brush lightly from back to front for about ten seconds, and to replace the brush every three months. The company also sets new users a challenge: to use the brush and gel every day for ten days, adding that most of its customers describe the routine as hard to give up once started. **TUNG Gel Original – Fresh Mint** is the companion gel. According to the brand, it helps loosen bacteria from the tongue's crevices, while a zinc compound neutralises the sulphur gases that bacteria give off, which are what people smell as bad breath [3]. The company stresses that the gel rinses away cleanly and leaves no residue on the brush. An independent reviewer lists the gel's ingredients as including sorbitol, glycerin, xylitol, zinc lactate and stevia extract, and names zinc lactate as the active ingredient that neutralises sulphur compounds [10]. **TUNG Gel Natural – Mint Blast** is a later formulation. The company presents it as made with natural ingredients drawn from the Natural Products Association list, and says it contains no sodium lauryl sulphate (a common foaming agent), no fluoride, no parabens and no artificial colours or flavours. It also describes the gel as gluten free and not tested on animals [7]. No third-party certifications are documented for the range. **TUNG for Kids** extends the system to children. The company calls it the first tongue brush and gel designed specifically for kids, and pairs it with advice for parents on building the habit, such as letting children look at their tongue before and after cleaning it. The brand also points to research of its own kind. According to TUNG's homepage, 90% of consumers preferred the TUNG Brush and Gel in a study conducted by Nova Southeastern University; the company does not publish the study's details on its site [1]. ## Recognition According to a company press release dated 17 April 2014, TUNG received the Ted Klein "Tube of the Year" award from the North American Tube Council, an industry recognition for tube packaging [5]. The award is documented in the company's own press material. The brand has also used humour to promote its message. A cartoon character named Brushy Bear, who urges viewers to clean their tongues in song, starred in a video that the company said had passed two million views on Facebook. The press release announcing the milestone is dated 8 September 2016 in the brand's press room and 7 September 2016 on its press category page [5][6]. Independent coverage of the brand is limited. One long-term user review on IZReview, written after more than four years of use, concluded that TUNG noticeably reduced bad breath with regular use, but did not eliminate it completely in every case and stopped working once use stopped. The reviewer also noted the initial gag reflex when brushing the back of the tongue and the need to buy gel separately [10]. ## Current status TUNG is active. Its website remains maintained, with a blog post on research linking oral bacteria to pancreatic cancer published in November 2025, and its homepage promotes the newer TUNG for Kids line. Online sales run chiefly through an Amazon brand store linked from the website. The company's FAQ notes that its products are not distributed in Canada, despite the Toronto supplier named on its About page [9]. The brand continues to operate as a small, single-category business under Peak Enterprises. ## Timeline {#belagg-timeline} | Year | Event | Source | |---|---|---| | 1997 | Peak Enterprises introduced Dr. Wieder's Original Tung-Brush and Tung Gel (June 1997, per RDH Magazine trade-press notice). | https://rdhmag.com/patient-care/rinses-pastes/article/16406742/tongue-brush | | 2014 | Brand press release (April 17, 2014): TUNG received the Ted Klein 'Tube of the Year' from the North American Tube Council (brand-reported; not independently confirmed in this harvest). | https://www.tungbrush.com/press-room/ | | 2016 | Brand press release (September 2016): the Brushy Bear cartoon video promoting tongue brushing passed 2 million Facebook views. | https://www.tungbrush.com/press-room/ | | — | Launched TUNG Gel Natural – Mint Blast, a new formulation with natural ingredients, no SLS and no fluoride (launch year not stated). | https://www.tungbrush.com/tongue-brush-natural-gel/ | | — | Launched TUNG for Kids, described by the brand as the first tongue brush and gel designed for kids (launch year not stated). | https://www.tungbrush.com/kids-tongue-brush/ | ## Awards {#belagg-awards} | Year | Awards | Category | Source | |---|---|---|---| | 2014 | Ted Klein "Tube of the Year" (North American Tube Council) | Tube packaging (brand-reported) | https://www.tungbrush.com/press-room/ | ## Signature products {#belagg-products} - **TUNG Brush** — Specifically designed by a dentist for the anatomy of the tongue, the short, firm bristles effectively and comfortably work through the sticky tongue plaque — https://www.tungbrush.com/what-is-tung/ - **TUNG Gel Original – Fresh Mint** — TUNG Gel is a fresh, minty cleansing formula designed to help loosen and remove bacteria from the tongue crevices. — https://www.tungbrush.com/what-is-tung/ - **TUNG Gel Natural – Mint Blast** — TUNG, the brand that started tongue brushing, is introducing a NEW FORMULATION and flavor that includes natural ingredients. No SLS. No Fluoride. No artificial colors or flavors. Just fresh natural MINT BLAST. — https://www.tungbrush.com/tongue-brush-natural-gel/ - **TUNG for Kids (TUNG Brush/TUNG Gel for Kids)** — The first ever tongue brush & tongue gel specially designed for kids! — https://www.tungbrush.com/kids-tongue-brush/ ## Key ingredients {#belagg-ingredients} zinc compound Source: https://www.tungbrush.com/what-is-tung/ ## Mentioned in {#belagg-press} - **RDH Magazine** (1997) — Trade-press product notice announcing Peak Enterprises' introduction of Dr. Wieder's Original Tung-Brush and Tung Gel. — https://rdhmag.com/patient-care/rinses-pastes/article/16406742/tongue-brush - **Wellness Magazine (ewellnessmag.com)** (2025) — Feature on TUNG Brush and TUNG Gel linked from the brand homepage; URL slug suggests a featured/paid placement. — https://wellnessmasterclub.ewellnessmag.com/your-tongue-deserves-the-spotlight-meet-the-game-changing-duo-for-oral-care-ff-674-2025-the-original-tung/ - **IZReview** (2026) — Independent long-term user review; verdict that TUNG reduces but does not completely eliminate bad breath and only works with continued daily use. — https://www.izreview.com/tung-tongue-cleaner-gel-and-brush-review/ ## Sources 1. (T1) https://www.tungbrush.com/ 2. (T1) https://www.tungbrush.com/about-us/ 3. (T2) https://www.tungbrush.com/what-is-tung/ 4. (T2) https://www.tungbrush.com/why/science-behind-tung/ 5. (T2) https://www.tungbrush.com/press-room/ 6. (T2) https://www.tungbrush.com/category/press/ 7. (T2) https://www.tungbrush.com/tongue-brush-natural-gel/ 9. (T2) https://www.tungbrush.com/faqs/ 10. (T3) https://www.izreview.com/tung-tongue-cleaner-gel-and-brush-review/ --- Glowpedia · · Published 2026-10-06 Please cite with a link to the article URL.