Tooth Brushing Technique
(2 minutes morning and night)
When you brush your teeth you are doing two things. The first is mechanically removing layers of bacteria that build up on your teeth and the second is applying fluoride from the toothpaste you use. It is important to brush for a full 2 minutes to ensure that enough time is taken to cover all of the accessible surfaces. Brush with small circular motions pressing gently and working on 2-3 teeth at a time We recommend a sequential approach to brushing as shown in the animation below.
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Now move on to the lower teeth and do it all again!
Brush for 2 minutes in the morning and 2 minutes at night for maximum benefit.
Below is a guide to selecting the right toothbrush for you and the whole family. Brushing only covers 80% of the surfaces of the teeth. There has not been a toothbrush made yet with bristles which are small enough to clean effectively between the teeth. The area where teeth meet is one of the most common sites of tooth decay ......so to avoid this you will need to use interdental brushes, sticks or dental Floss.
Selecting the Right Toothbrush
Hard or Soft?
A good toothbrush has SOFT bristles, most of us look for firm are hard toothbrushes because we "feel" that this will give us a better "scrub," these toothbrushes are in fact damaging to your gums and in certain circumstances can also damage your teeth as well.
Size
Does matter for toothbrushes, and the smaller the head on your toothbrush the better. Most toothbrushes on the market are too big. The head of the toothbrush should be no more than 1.5 cm long otherwise you will not physically be able to get it in to all the nooks and crannies at the back of your mouth. For very difficult areas consider using a single tufted (interdental) toothbrush.
Electric or Manual
Many of our patients have shown dramatic improvements in their dental health thanks to the dedicated work of our Hygienists but also by using an electric toothbrush. The electric brushes with the round heads seem to produce the best results. The good news is that the cheaper ones between £20 and £30 appear to produce the same benefits as those at £50 and above.
How often should I replace my toothbrush?
Make sure you replace your toothbrush regularly, over time bacteria build up in the bristles and this means that every time you clean your teeth you are adding more bacteria to your mouth not removing them! Make sure you rinse your brush thoroughly after every use. For manual toothbrushes replacement every 4 weeks is recommended and for electric toothbrushes, 1-2 months between replacement is a good idea. If the bristles of your brush become bent before this then you should think about replacing your brush sooner (this would also suggest that you are brushing too hard!).
Children
We strongly recommend that an adult supervise tooth brushing in very young children as toothbrushes may present a choking hazard if used incorrectly. We also suggest that adults should brush their child’s teeth up to the age of six or seven as children younger than this usually do not have adequate manual dexterity to brush all of their teeth thoroughly. If your child is under this age and is keen on brushing then do continue to encourage them. However, make sure that you supervise them and that you also brush your child’s teeth before or after they have done so themselves.
For very young babies and toddlers we recommend child friendly brushes with big handles and very small heads. These are available from most good manufacturers. Just remember to use (less than) a pea size amount of toothpaste on the brush as young children will swallow most of it since they do not yet have the muscular control needed to spit things out effectively.
Brush around the outside of the top teeth on the surfaces nearest to your cheek. 20 seconds
Then work back round on the biting surfaces of your teeth. 20 seconds
Finally brush back round the teeth on the inside surface next to the roof of your mouth. 20 seconds
Now move on to the lower teeth and do it all again!
