So, I started a new brushing teeth routine where I would use half the amount of toothpaste, but brush my teeth twice. It feels a lot cleaner (and looks whiter).
I started to think about the mechanics of brushing ones teeth and it dawned on me. There are two different things going on. You are physically scraping any plague and debris from your teeth and gum, and you are chemically fighting cavities with fluoride. Simple, but it seems like there is some wasted effort here. Imagine that you have a patio deck to clean and you have one brush and some chemical cleaner. If you cleaned the deck only once and rinsed it afterward with water, you will notice that the deck only became mostly clean because you probably missed a few places on the deck that was covered with dirt and some removed dirt. You should rinse the deck off once and then go over the deck again to clean up the places that are still dirty! Now there’s an idea.
Okay, I am going to get down and dirty on my logic, so if this is already too much information, stop reading now.
Here are my thoughts:
- Brushing your teeth without toothpaste (I’ve done this before) means that you are simply scrapping away the large pieces of food and ‘white stuff’ that collects on your teeth. Doesn’t feel as fresh, but you can remove a lot of junk from your teeth.
- Brushing your teeth without a toothbrush but with toothpaste (and yes I’ve done this before too) won’t remove the obvious pieces of food particles, but chemically the fluoride does some work against cavities. Tastes better, but you know you have a lot more to do when you get your toothbrush.
- Brushing your teeth with a toothbrush and a full amount of toothpaste will simultaneously scrap food particles and chemically prevent cavities. It works, however, if you notice that the toothpaste foams up and mixes with the food particles, it makes you want to spit out all that toothpaste and junk. What a waste!
- This is what I started doing: Brushing your teeth with a toothbrush with half the amount of toothpaste, rinse, and re-apply the other half of toothpaste. Feels cleaner and mintier.
When you brush your teeth the first time you are getting 80 to 90 percent of your teeth cleaned (I’m not a dentist). Ironically, it’s that 10 percent of your teeth that gets you into trouble. (Again, not a dentist.) However, when you brush your teeth the second time you probably eliminated another 3 to 6 percent more (because you won’t be able to clean 100 percent.). (I swear I am not a dentist). That will save you on your next dental bill. (I am not an accountant either.)
Okay, I know this is a weird post, but I thought it was kind of funny rationalizing this in my head so I decided to share with everyone else.
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{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Very random post! BUT, Im going to try it tonight
Maybe I can get my son to do this, he hates toothpaste- so maybe half and half will ultimately be easier on him.
Thanks for sharing
Well I hope it works for you son, but I would imagine brushing your teeth twice isn’t exactly what your son would call a solution. Hopefully the reduced amount of toothpaste will help him brush his teeth. I think they have bubblegum flavor toothpaste.
My dentist told me that regardless of how well you brush your teeth you won’t be able to 100% prevent cavities.
Ask your dentist about ’sealants’ that forms over the surface of your tooth. They ’seal’ up the small holes and it prevents cavities. They last a few years and takes 5 minutes to install.
Good luck!