Last week I flew a bunch of legs. Before I left I carefully went through all my stuff (I only fly with carry-ons) and removed all gels, shaving cream, toothpaste, ointments, etc.
On the fifth leg of the trip, a flight from LAX to SFO, which was the first leg of a flight number to London (that plane wasn't going to London, you had to change planes at SFO to continue on to London), they had the national guard doing secondary inspection at the gate. (after you gave them your boarding pass and were inside the gate, but before the actual jetway.)
I had a toothbrush kit from a W hotel in my toiletry kit. I didn't realize that there was a tiny thing of toothpaste in that box, sealed with a toothbrush in plastic wrap. They found it. Nobody else did, even though at several locations they picked one of my 2 bags for hand inspection.
Solids are fine (deodarant). Powders are fine. Gels and liquids are not, unless it's small quantities of medicine and certain other things that are exempt.
-David