Today we’d like to introduce you to Heather Pharr.
Hi Heather, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I grew up in central Houston as the oldest of five kids. I moved to Austin to attend The University of Texas, where I double majored in Public Relations and Hispanic Studies. After graduation, I spent six months traveling and volunteering in South America before returning to Austin to work in social work at The Settlement Home for three years. During that time, I felt a pull toward law school—a dream I had considered but postponed—and ultimately enrolled at St. Mary’s School of Law in San Antonio.
In my second year of law school, I met my husband, Whit,( a great story but best told in person and definitely meant to be ) who was completing his Prosthodontic residency at The UT Health Science Center. That summer, I returned to Austin for internships at the Supreme Court and the Juvenile Public Defenders Office, and Whit and I spent our weekends exploring the city together—brunching, listening to live music, and connecting with friends. We decided to build our life together in Austin rather than moving back to our hometowns of Virginia Beach and Houston.
We got married in 2013 in Austin at St Austin’s church with the party at Hotel Ella, welcomed our first son Hayes soon after, and Whit opened his private dental practice. During those early years, I worked as a landman in South Texas for a year or so, later joining the Texas Railroad Commission’s Enforcement Division. As our family grew—two more boys, Jake and Hardy, joined us in 2015 and 2019—Whit’s dental career expanded to a second dental office, and I stepped away from law to help run and manage the business and take care of the boys.
After the birth of our third son and a transformative home birth experience, I felt called to focus on health, nutrition, and helping others, inspired in part by my own chronic health struggles. The pandemic became a turning point, creating space for reflection and pushing me to pursue health coaching, integrative nutrition studies, and yoga teacher training. I began teaching yoga, coaching clients, and exploring what it would look like to dedicate myself more fully to holistic health as a career passion project..
Meanwhile, Whit pursued certifications in Integrative and Biological Medicine and Dentistry, which deepened his understanding of the mouth-body connection on a more holistic level than ever before. Together, we began exploring how lifestyle, nutrition, and oral health intersect. Having young children and trying to keep everyone well and thriving, really pushed me to start looking further than food and exercise to other things that might affect health. When we discovered how toxic conventional toothpaste ingredients were, we experimented with alternatives but couldn’t find a product that met both of our standards—clinically effective for him as a dentist, and safe and microbiome-friendly for me as a health coach and mom.
That challenge sparked the creation of Yin & Fang. Over three years of research and development, we formulated a clean, effective toothpaste and designed sustainable packaging: a compostable refill packet, a reusable ceramic container, a bamboo spatula, and bamboo floss. In July 2025, after years of development, we officially launched both online and in select retail locations.
During this development phase, we also leaned into sharing more of our lifestyle publicly—growing a community on Instagram where I offered nutrition tips, exercise ideas, and holistic health guidance. That passion spilled over into real-life experiences: I partnered with Novi Pilates Studio to host a half-day wellness retreat, and last spring, we launched a weekly Sunday Night Ritual that brought people together for yoga, cold plunges, and sauna sessions. These events became a meaningful way to connect with others who shared our vision of health as a full-body, whole-life practice.
At the same time, homeschooling our boys led us into another unexpected venture. Around this period, Whit launched Knoxguards, a custom sports mouthguard company designed to protect young athletes teeth and developing brains. Shortly after, as part of an entrepreneurial homeschool project, I worked with our boys to create Warrior Juice—a clean electrolyte drink with just three ingredients: organic coconut water, fresh watermelon or orange juice, and sea salt. What started as a neighborhood project grew into a real business when a local grocer, Local Pastures, offered to carry it. Today, Warrior Juice is stocked locally and available for special orders for sports teams, birthday parties, and community events.
Both Yin & Fang and Warrior Juice grew naturally out of my passion for health and our desire to solve problems first for our family, and then for others. Alongside these projects, Whit and I also co-host a podcast where we share our perspectives on oral health, nutrition, movement, and holistic living, while highlighting conversations with wellness leaders in Austin’s vibrant health community.
Through every chapter—law, dentistry, coaching, product development, and family life—our story has been about building a life rooted in family, health, community, and entrepreneurship.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Oh my gosh, no! Ha! We are balancing raising a family, being present parents, keeping our marriage strong at the center of it all and managing stress, time, and finances. I have wanted to quit all different parts of it at one time or another. The trick is that one of us, Whit or I, is not at the quitting point ever at the same time. Additionally, I have never created a product. Neither had Whit, so as a couple, we are flying blind. We had no idea what we were getting into. In my mind, I would have a formula in a tube in 3 months and start selling by month 4. Every step of the process has been some version of a financial challenge or a mental challenge, or both. We ended up reimagining the delivery system of the toothpaste a year in , after designing and ordering aluminum tubes, and you make that decision and then have to come up with who to call next. Ok, we need to design something for it to go in. But what? And who is going to make it? Who makes containers? What material do we want? Is that even possible? I had no idea. Lots of the challenge is mental. As an example, it took about 6-9 months to design the final container. This was after going down a totally separate road with another smaller company in Mexico that handmade about 150 for us, half of which broke during delivery, and then we realized it was going to have functional issues and also the company couldn’t scale it. So we finally go through the back and forth of approving design where every time we make a change it was about 6 weeks for them to send us something physical to approve. So we make the purchase order in January thinking we are going to be selling by February, and they proceed to tell us it will take 4 more months for delivery. That was incredibly hard. We were now 2.5 years in and waiting again. Then, in April they aren’t ready, now its going to be May. Then they waited until mid may when they were ready to ship to ask us if we had set up a company to help with customs. Another thing I had not thought was going to be on us, but rather something they worked out. Figuring that out took another 2 months. The containers finally arrived mid July. It was stressful because that was another 7 months before we could see any sales and money coming back in from all the investment we had made thus far.
There were also plenty of things along the way like money being spent on a consultant or formulator or some expert that in the end wasn’t actually necessary, and that was just part of the learning process and not being confident in a new business space.
Being a wife and mom first, and making sure I am not letting stress from the businesses control the day is probably the biggest challenge. We are still homeschooling, so managing my time as we have really expanded both Warrior Juice and Yin & Fang since the beginning of this last summer is certainly a challenge.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Yin & Fang?
Yin & Fang is an oral care brand. We specialize in elevating your holistic, non toxic oral care experience.
Yin & Fang is a holistic oral care company that bridges the gap between nature and science. We create clean, effective, and safe-to-swallow products that support the mouth-body connection. Our formulas are built on food-grade ingredients—like coconut oil, c0coa butter, baking soda, and nano-hydroxyapatite (a natural alternative to fluoride proven to strengthen and remineralize teeth). We’re known for bringing a refreshing, health-first approach to oral care that goes beyond whitening—it’s about long-term vitality, strengthening enamel, balancing the oral microbiome, and supporting overall wellness.
Unlike conventional toothpastes packed with synthetic foaming agents, artificial sweeteners, and potentially harmful additives, Yin & Fang products are crafted from ingredients you’d actually feel good about swallowing. Conventional toothpaste, and even many of the “healthier” alternatives out there now are formulated with either outdated information about oral health and ingredients or they have been forced to knowingly put unnecessary additives in their formulas to stick to the shelf life and functionality of a tube. Our toothpaste is designed with the philosophy that oral care should never compromise health—and that what goes into your body matters as much as what goes on your teeth. Health starts in the mouth and is the window into the body’s overall health. We also prioritize sustainability, using ceramic containers and compostable packaging instead of single-use plastic tubes that contribute to landfill waste which is unique.
We’re most proud that Yin & Fang represents more than just a product—it’s a movement toward mindful oral & overall health. We’ve built our brand on transparency, education, and empowering families to take their wellness into their own hands. Seeing parents, athletes, and wellness enthusiasts embrace our products as part of their daily ritual is what drives us. Equally, we’re proud to be pioneering a safe, elevated alternative to mainstream oral care that doesn’t force consumers to choose between effectiveness and health.
At Yin & Fang, we believe oral care is whole-body care. Our signature product is our mineral-rich, nano-hydroxyapatite toothpaste, which comes paired with our eco-friendly, highly effective bamboo floss and beautifully designed ceramic container starter kit. We offer subscriptions for ease and consistency, and we’re actively expanding into local wellness retailers, making it easier to shop clean oral care in your community. More than products, though, Yin & Fang is a brand that educates—we regularly share holistic oral health tips and resources so that our community feels informed and supported in every step of their wellness journey.
How do you think about luck?
Luck I don’t know. I think I would say it’s more synchronicities from being aligned with God, spirituality and purpose and connected in my relationship with my husband- in combination with working at something and trusting things that are meant to be will come into your life. And I think it has everything to do with that. I feel like when those things are aligned and driving the focus of our life and business, we come out ahead every time. Things seem to fall into place, which certainly feels lucky, but I think it’s much bigger and deeper than that.
Pricing:
- Yin & Fang Starter Kit’s are $30 online
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.yinandfang.com
- Instagram: @yinandfang
- Other: @hpholistichealth
Image Credits
Brandon Hill
