Mouth Hygiene

[ColtDan]

mouth hygiene... isnt it nice to have a fresh feeling mouth, and trying to keep teeth as white as possible asides from weekends of smoking etc and partying around the clock, i try and clean my teeth before and after every meal, every coffee, floss once a day and only smoke on weekends. what toothbrush & tooth paste do you use? whats you're regime? wish i could afford teeth whitening. anyone tried those whitening strips?

i use...

Braun oral B 500

Colgate whitening

Arm & Hammer baking soda tooth paste

mouthwash =

 

[amapola]

^You don't want to brush your teeth for an hour or so after eating. Acids and enzymes activated by the eating to break down the food also weaken a layer of your teeth which is then suseptible to damage by brushing for a little while.

The only other thing I'll say to people out there is if you for some reason actually had to choose between brushing or flossing, you should flossing. So yeah just do both.

 

[addictivepersona]

I use the toothbrush given to me by my dentist. When that one starts looking ratty, or in abouuut three months, I change it out for whichever toothbrush is the cheapest and is "soft" or "extra soft."

I use Desert Essence's "Natural Tea Tree Oil" toothpaste:

NSFW:

I brush after breakfast and before bed. Always before bed, not always after breakfast. I floss with a Reach Access flosser as I lack the dexterity for normal flossing. I floss before brushing my teeth.

NSFW:

I don't use mouthwash anymore--There's really no need to after switching to a better toothpaste. The toothpaste alone leaves my mouth feeling very clean, though a bit dry. Going to try a different toothpaste in six months when I finish this tube (yes, it takes me about a year to finish one standard-size tube ).



For those of you who brush directly after a meal... You might want to hold off a little while (some say thirty minutes, some say two hours) before doing so if you've just had something acidic, as the acid can temporarily weaken the enamel on your teeth, causing you to permanently weaken it by brushing.

 

[ColtDan]

ah ok thanks. i usually wait around 10 minutes, might wait longer,

 

[delta_9]

Great topic! Oral hygiene is the shizz

Let's see the toothbrush I use at the moment looks a little this(although it's not oral b brand, it's generic). I have an extra so this is the one I'll be using for a while. I don't mind a little extra elbow grease, so I never really gave those electric ones much of a second thought.

Toothpaste? I'm using NOW Foods brand but it's almost empty. I bought this last week.

I brush twice a day. After I wake up(or within a short while, but I almost never eat/drink coffee beforehand), and before I go to sleep.
...Need to pick up more of those disposable floss things....Also I don't use mouthwash either...

An interesting thing I remembered - someone I know told me that after they brush/floss, they empty a small probiotic capsule in their mouth with some water and swish. Apparently this populates their mouth with the beneficial bacteria. I'd never heard anyone do anything like this and it never would've occured to me. What do you guys think?

 

[Darksidesam]

For those of you who brush directly after a meal... You might want to hold off a little while (some say thirty minutes, some say two hours) before doing so if you've just had something acidic, as the acid can temporarily weaken the enamel on your teeth, causing you to permanently weaken it by brushing.

Yes i hear this too,

would depend what you have ate or drunk

 

[n3ophy7e]

ah ok thanks. i usually wait around 10 minutes, might wait longer,

If you're concerned about mouth hygiene after meals, you could just floss to get bits out from between your teeth, then swish and rinse with water a few times. You could do a soft brush 1 hour after eating if you really want to.


My main tip for dental hygiene is to rinse with water after eating or drinking anything sugary or acidic.

 

[Dave]

Any tongue scrapers out there? I started doing it when I got my first electric toothbrush, and just love it! I scrape in the morning, after brushing and before mouthwash; in the evening I'll brush, floss, mouthwash and then splint up.

The main thing to remember when brushing, is that it is more of a tooth massage then scrubbing the shit out of your teeth. And really, for adults it's more about the gum massage anyway. Very little pressure is needed.

Oh, and to add to n3o's tip: rinsing with water is key after coffee or tea to reduce staining. My hygenist always gives me crap for that, so I'm trying to get in the habit.

 

[euphoria]

I have recently started flossing a lot more regularly and I can tell it makes my breath smell a lot better. I also just wanted to throw in there my mom has receding gums and I can also see the gum receding on a few of my teeth, so be careful you're not brushing TOO much or too hard. I brush my teeth pretty hard it's something that I do unconsciously and I have to make an effort to control.

 

[n3ophy7e]

The main thing to remember when brushing, is that it is more of a tooth massage then scrubbing the shit out of your teeth. And really, for adults it's more about the gum massage anyway. Very little pressure is needed.

Yes! Actually Dave, I was intending to bring this up as well. Thank you for reading my mind

Brushing too hard and/or too often can wear the enamel away and damage the gums, which is quite contraindicatory to the whole reason you're trying to take care of your teeth in the first place!

I brush my teeth pretty hard it's something that I do unconsciously and I have to make an effort to control.

My boyfriend does this too. I always have to remind him to relax when he's brushing :D It's quite stressful watching him brush his teeth because he brushes so frantically and with such force, occasionally the toothbrush slips off his teeth and he accidentally rams it in to his gums. Owwie!!

 

[Mehm]

Besides flossing daily with Dessert Essence tea trea floss, I try to mix it up a bit. Usually I'll use Auromere herbal/ayurvedic toothpaste and a manual brush at night. I also swish with tea tree oil and water sometimes, use a paper towel to scrub my teeth, or a tablespoon of pure cinnamon vigorously rubbed around my mouth and gums feels great and leaves the teeth very smooth and clean feeling. I also do oil pulls occasionally with coconut oil and daily tongue scraping with my toothbrush. I do want to get a metal scraper. I think the pro-biotic idea is great, will check it out.

 

[addictivepersona]

Wow, got some interesting information being thrown around, all about your mouth! LOL.

I too sometimes brush too hard--That's why I had to switch to a soft (or extra soft) brush. I was reprimanded by my dentist six months ago for brushing wayyyy too hard, and was told to stop, and to switch to a softer brush. They told me to stop 'cause of receding gums. Thankfully they're back to how they normally are now.

I also brush my tongue--It's the last thing I brush. If I don't brush my tongue after brushing my teeth, my mouth just doesn't feel clean!

 

[ColtDan]

i always brush hard, have done for years. dentist hasn't said anything about it. but from reading what you guys have said im gonna ease up on the pressure. before i got an electric toothbrush i had a few misshaps when brushing - few times ive slipped, rammed the end of the toothbrush straight into my gum when brushing like mad with lots of pressure. swelled up, hurt like crazy for days lol

im surprised a thread like this hasn't been made, seems to be a lot of active topics about all kinds of stuff, and tooth care is priority. having skanky teeth is horrible. yellow nasty teeth are disgusting. plus its expensive for check ups/fillings/hygenist etc. and drugs arnt particularly good for teeth, especially stims

 

[Bearlove]

I normally brush my teeth two to three times per day and floss / mouthwash every night before bed - I normally give my tongue a scrape/brush then also.

I prefer those little flossing picks as opposed to the thread stuff that you have to wrap around your fingers. I've used the home whitening kits before and they give good results but I feel they are really abrasive on the teeth and can leave your teeth feeling sensitive - I actually had mine professionally whitened a few weeks ago and I'm really pleased with the results.

 

[addictivepersona]

im surprised a thread like this hasn't been made, seems to be a lot of active topics about all kinds of stuff, and tooth care is priority. having skanky teeth is horrible. yellow nasty teeth are disgusting. plus its expensive for check ups/fillings/hygenist etc. and drugs arnt particularly good for teeth, especially stims

Lol, I think there was a thread on this in the past, but I don't really care enough to search for it. And yes, yellow/skanky teeth are disgusting.

 

[Dave]

@firefighter: Flossing very regularly, especially at night, is the number one thing that you can do to counter gum recession. I've actually had some minor recession reverse itself between cleanings just by switching flossing from in the mornings to the evenings. Surprisingly effective!

@n3o: Great minds, and all that

 

[michael]

i find that using a pre-brush rinse helps me a lot - i have a couple spaces where food can get caught that even daily flossing doesn't seem to help.

 

[attempt4]

Man, this is something close to home for me. I take good care of my teeth but obviously not enough as I seem to have problems quite often.

If you saw my teeth, you'd think there is nothing wrong with them....they are all white, all present, nearly all straight (thats the one thing that really gets me) however the ones at the back seem to always need fillings. I have had 2 teeth removed due to abscess. Had root canal treatment twice, several fillings and all sorts.

I honestly think the dentist is trying to scam me though and here's why:
1) They told me I needed fillings when I didnt think I did. I got the second opinion of another professional dentist and he said "no". A good friend of mine has perfect teeth and they tried to tell him he needed a couple fillings. Well, he got his dad (qualified dentist) and another great dentist to check him over and they said "absolutely no way".
2) They opened up completely out of the blue, and are all barely able to speak a word of english. The building isn't the best, and was converted from a restaurant
2a) The dentist's don't seem to know what they are doing half the time, nor can they fully understand my problem when I explain due to their lack of English.
3) I have heard from several people that they stopped with them because they are so shit.

However, this said and done, I do get toothache often and do need work a lot, I think. I brush 3 times a day, use mouthwash but never floss as it never seems to feel like it's doing anything and I don't really know how to do it properly, nobody taught me what to do.

This is stressing me out a bit because if I'm going to go travelling, I need to know how to ensure i'm not going to wind up needing a filling or some shit, plus I'd like to keep these teeth as long as I can as they are actually good, strong healthy and very clean/white looking, it's just the back ones seem to act up despite my careful mouth hygiene.

I will bear in mind the "no brushing until an hour after a meal" but has anyone got any more excellent tips? Anyone know any dentists?

 

[Dave]

There is also a genetic component to tooth health. My mom has always brushed and flossed fastidiously, and has a mouth full of fillings. My dad has never brushed more than once a day, and might floss once a week, and has all of two fillings. He also used to smoke, drink 2+ litres of soda a day, etc... He just has really strong enamel, which I was fortunate to inherit. :D

I take better care of my teeth than him though. Bad breath = teh nasty.

 

[L2R]

*waits patiently for busty*