THE BATTLE OF THE TOOTHBRUSHES

– which is better?

Well like most things, it DEPENDS!

There are pros and cons for each.

Although studies do say the electric brush is a tiny bit better than manual – they can both be effective if the correct technique is used.

The electric brush is great for people with dexterity issues such as arthritis in the hands, they have a timer which is great and are most effective if they rotate around rather than vibrate.

Although the issue becomes in how much toothpaste is used. The trend I often see is that the back teeth tend to have more signs of ‘early decay’ which is most often due to only a pea-sized amount of toothpaste is being used.

Whereas, with a manual brush, most people are using toothpaste which spans the whole length of the brush. This means more fluoride gets to the teeth and there tends to be less of that same looking ‘early decay’. So I like to let my patients in on a secret when using the electric brush – and that is to re-apply another lot of toothpaste for the bottom teeth! More toothpaste = more fluoride and less decay/mush on the back teeth, yay!

However using a manual brush can mean there is more gum wear and tooth wear on teeth if a hard or medium brush is used with the wrong technique.

So its important to use an ultra-soft tooth brush and a round circle motion when cleaning teeth.

If your still uncertain about which one is best for you, come down and see us so we can give you expert advice for your particular situation!

Give us a call on 9438 2883!