Dr. Mark J. Warner, DDS, owns Mark Warner DDS General Dentistry in Fairfield, California, and knows how to keep his teeth in top shape. In fact, he even knows how you should care for your teeth. Here, he discusses why getting a good toothbrush is important, and how your own toothbrushing technique can impact the state of your teeth.
As far as I am concerned, the right one has soft, rounded bristles. As long as you have those bristles, then I am not too concerned with the rest. The reason that we don’t want the bristles to be too hard is because we can damage the tooth structure as well as the gum structure if we use a hard toothbrush. We don’t want a sharp, brittle head for the same reason as it can harm the gum tissue if the tip is of poor quality or too brittle.
A good toothbrush will have a head which is rounded and polished, so it will not damage the structures. As long as we have a toothbrush that falls into those categories, it is more about technique, about how we use the brush, more than the brush itself.
Good Brushing Techniques
Ideally, we want to have the brush held against tooth at a 45-degree angle. We want to have it moving in small circular motions, not agitating. The bristles will work up under the edge of the gum and in between the teeth a bit better that way than if we make an up and down or large scrubbing movement or motion. That can eventually damage the tooth.
I recommend a minimum of brushing teeth once in the morning and once at night. It’s a good idea to do a good rinse during the day if you feel like you have food in there. You want to brush probably for about two minutes at least, and I prefer a power or electric toothbrush over a manual one.
Manual versus Electric
An electric toothbrush will have more brush strokes against the tooth structure per minute than you have manually. Either regular or sonic ones are good; I love those sonic ones such as Sonicare and I also love Oral B.
I use the Oral B toothbrush myself; it moves in several dimensions, side to side and in and out. It’s not better than Sonicare, but I found Sonicare a bit tickly. I like the Oral B toothbrush better; I like its round head, although I think they both work well.
Keep on Flossing
Brushing is good, you want to do that twice a day, but definitely don’t forget to floss. You want to have floss in between the teeth at least once a day as well. As good as a brush is, you cannot slot it in between the teeth. I prefer just standard waxed floss, Johnson and Johnson. The reason for that is that I like actual string floss versus a glide Teflon strip-type of floss.
Dental tape is fine as long as it has fibers in it. You want floss to splay out against the tooth structure so you have multiple structures engaging the tooth and fighting bacteria, instead of just a single structure.
The information in the article is not intended to substitute for the medical expertise and advice of your healthcare provider. We encourage you to discuss any decisions about treatment or care with an appropriate healthcare provider.
