HOW TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT TOOTHBRUSH.

 HOW TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT TOOTHBRUSH.

A toothbrush is an oral hygiene instrument used to clean the teeth, gums, and tongue. It consists of a head of tightly clustered bristles, atop of which toothpaste can be applied, mounted on a handle which facilitates the cleaning of hard-to-reach areas of the mouth. They are usually used alongside floss.

They are available with different bristle textures, sizes, and forms. Most dentists recommend using a soft toothbrush since hard-bristled toothbrushes can damage tooth enamel and irritate the gums.

Because many common and effective ingredients in toothpaste are harmful if swallowed in large doses and instead should be spat out, the act of brushing teeth is most often done at a bathroom, where the brush may be rinsed off afterwards to remove any debris remaining and then dried to reduce conditions ideal for germ growth (and, if it is a wooden toothbrush, mold as well).

Many toothbrushes have wooden handles, often bamboo. However, numerous others are made of cheap plastic; such brushes constitute a significant source of pollution.  Bristles are commonly made of nylon (which, while not biodegradable, as plastic is, may still be recycled) or bamboo viscose.

The first and most important thing you need to look at in a manual toothbrush is size. The size of your toothbrush should be appropriately selected to fit the opening of your mouth. For example, if your back end of your toothbrush keeps hitting the opposing arch while brushing, or the tip jams into the back of your jawbone, it’s probably too big for you.  There are many adults that do fairly well with youth toothbrushes.

Toothbrushes are available in a variety of bristle hardness, usually marked “soft,” “medium” or “hard.” Most people will only need a soft or medium brush for their teeth. A hard brush can damage your teeth and gums, especially if you use it to scrub your teeth roughly.

Regardless of the type of brush you choose, take care to use proper brushing technique. This means holding your brush at a 45-degree angle, positioned where your tooth and gum tissue meet. This can help clean under your gums. Also remember to brush your teeth’s surface gently, in a circular pattern – avoid roughly scrubbing in a back-and-forth motion. This can damage your gums!

If you’re unsure about toothbrush type or brushing technique, speak with your dental practitioner, who can give you detailed recommendations based on your own oral health.

The different types of toothbrushes available are:

·       Manual Toothbrush : 

The most common form of toothbrush available in our homes is the manual toothbrush. The four primary formats of the manual toothbrushes are Bristle Hardness, Head Shape, Bristle pattern and handle design.

-Bristle hardness :

 Soft bristles are appropriate for most people, but medium- and hard-bristled toothbrushes are also available. The advantage of using a harder toothbrush is that it clears away more plaque, but it may irritate your gums and even wear away your enamel if you brush too hard.

-Head shape :

 Conventionally shaped toothbrush heads are rounded or squared off. Diamond-shaped toothbrushes tend to be better at reaching the back and sides of your molars.

-Bristle pattern:

 Several different bristle patterns are effective at cleaning teeth. Common varieties include wavy, crisscross, tapered and bristles with polishing cups. Your choice should depend on your dental needs and what feels the most comfortable.

-Handle design:

 The four broad classes of toothbrush handles include straight, contra-angle, non-slip grip and flexible. The handle you choose should allow you to comfortably reach every tooth surface, including the very back of your mouth.

·       Electric Toothbrush:

An electric toothbrush performs rotations of its bristles and cleans hard to reach places. These brushes tend to be costlier, however, there are effortless when brushing. You simply press the button and let the toothbrush do its work. Some even have timers to help you brush more effectively. It has been discovered that compared to a manual brush, the multi-directional power brush might reduce the incidence of gingivitis and plaque when compared to regular side-to-side brushing.

It has been discovered that compared to a manual brush, the multi-directional power brush might reduce the incidence of gingivitis and plaque, when compared to regular side-to-side brushing. These brushes tend to be more costly. An electric toothbrush performs rotations of its bristles and cleans hard to reach places. Most studies report performances equivalent to those of manual brushings, possibly with a decrease in plaque and gingivitis although the electric version can be more comfortable. An additional timer and pressure sensors can encourage a more efficient cleaning process. Electric toothbrushes can be classified, according to the speed of their movements as: standard power toothbrushes, sonic toothbrushes, or ultrasonic toothbrushes. Any electric toothbrush is technically a power toothbrush. If the motion of the toothbrush is sufficiently rapid to produce a hum in the audible frequency range (20 Hz to 20,000 Hz), it can be classified as a sonic toothbrush. Any electric toothbrush with movement faster than this limit can be classified as an ultrasonic toothbrush. Certain ultrasonic toothbrushes, such as the Megasonex and the Ultreo, have both sonic and ultrasonic movements.

·       Inter-dental brush :

An inter-dental also called as an interproximal brush is a small brush, typically disposable, either supplied with a reusable angled plastic handle or an integral handle, used for cleaning between teeth and between the wires of dental braces and the teeth. In short, it is used to clean the interdental space (big gap). The use of interdental brushes in conjunction with tooth brushing, has been shown to reduce both the amount of plaque and the incidence of gingivitis when compared to toothbrushing alone. Although there is some evidence that after tooth brushing with a conventional tooth brush, interdental brushes remove more plaque than dental floss, a systematic review reported insufficient evidence to determine such an association.

An interdental or interproximal ("proxy") brush is a small brush, typically disposable, either supplied with a reusable angled plastic handle or an integral handle, used for cleaning between teeth and between the wires of dental braces and the teeth.

The size of interdental brushes is standardized in ISO 16409.  The brush size, which is a number between 0 (small space between teeth) and 8 (large space), indicates the passage hole diameter. This corresponds to the space between two teeth that is just sufficient for the brush to go through without bending the wire. The color of the brushes differs between producers. The same is the case with respect to the wire diameter.

·       Sulcabrush:

It is used specifically to clean along the gumline adjacent to the teeth. The bristles are usually shaped in a pointed arrow pattern to allow closer adaptation to the gums. A Sulcabrush is ideal for cleaning specific difficult-to-reach areas, such as between crowns, bridgework and crowded teeth.

·       End-tuft brush :

It is a small round brush head comprising of seven tufts of tightly packed soft nylon bristles, trimmed so the bristles in the center can reach deeper into small spaces. The brush handle is ergonomically designed for a firm grip, giving the control and precision necessary to clean where most other cleaning aids cannot reach such as the posterior of the wisdom teeth (third molars), orthodontic structures (braces), crowded teeth, and tooth surfaces that are next to missing teeth. It can also be used to clean areas around implants, bridges, dentures and other appliances.

·       Chewable toothbrush:

It is a miniature plastic molded toothbrush which can be placed inside the mouth. They are generally used by travelers and are sometimes available from bathroom vending machines. It is present in different flavors such as mint or bubble-gum and should be disposed of after use.

·       Ecological toothbrushes:

They are toothbrush made using biodegradable materials such as wooden handles, bristles of bamboo and/or replaceable heads. They try to avoid plastic which increases pollution. Since most of the people living today use the commonly available toothbrush made of plastic, every time we replace our toothbrush the pollution increases. Ecological toothbrush is being given a lot of push to conserve our nature.

·       Musical Toothbrush:

A musical toothbrush is a type of manual or powered toothbrush designed to make tooth brushing habit more interesting. It is more commonly introduced to children to gain their attention and positively influence their tooth brushing behavior. The music starts while child starts brushing, it continuously plays during the brushing and it ends child when stops brushing.

 

It is not recommended to share toothbrushes with others, since besides general hygienic concerns; there is a risk of transmitting diseases that are typically transmittable by blood, such as Hepatitis C. After use, it is advisable to rinse the toothbrush with water, shake it off and let the toothbrush dry.

Studies have shown that brushing to remove dental plaque more often than every 48 hours is enough to maintain gum and tooth health. Tooth brushing can remove plaque up to one millimeter below the gum line, and each person has a habitual brushing method, so more frequent brushing does not cover additional parts of the teeth or mouth.  Most dentists recommended patients brush twice a day in the hope that more frequent brushing would clean more areas of the mouth. Tooth brushing is the most common preventive healthcare activity, but tooth and gum disease remain high, since lay people clean at most 40% of their tooth margins at the gum line. Videos show that even when asked to brush their best, they do not know how to clean effectively.

Teeth can be damaged by several factors including poor oral hygiene, but also by wrong oral hygiene. Especially for sensitive teeth, damage to dentin and gums can be prevented by several measures including a correct brushing technique.

It is beneficial, when using a straight bristled brush, not to scrub horizontally over the necks of teeth, not to press the brush too hard against the teeth, to choose a toothpaste that is not too abrasive, and to wait at least 30 minutes after consumption of acidic food or drinks before brushing. Harder toothbrushes reduce plaque more efficiently but are more stressful to teeth and gum; using a medium to soft brush for a longer cleaning time was rated to be the best compromise between cleaning result and gum and tooth health.