Edit: Since it’s come up a couple times in the comment, I’ll add that there’s evidence use of a water flosser is more effective than dental floss.
Are they equally more effective at removing gums?
I mean, as they kind of point out in the article, this doesn’t actually say terribly much. I’ve always had the impression that electric toothbrushes are great for scrubbing off the plaque on the big surfaces of your teeth, while they’re probably worse at reaching all the weird little angles of your teeth. This could result in 20% less plaque in total, while not removing it from where it lingers around and causes cavities. At the same time, if you also floss regularly, maybe you’ve got your weird little angles covered differently already. It depends on quite a few factors, for which a meta study like this can hardly do justice…
I mean it also shows a 6–11% reduction in gingivitis, so it’s at least getting some of those weird little angles better. Gingivitis most commonly occurs because plaque stays too long around the lining of the gums, and thus electric brushes should at least be more effectively getting this off the bases of the crown – which to me were always way more difficult and awkward to effectively treat with a manual brush.
Meanwhile, there’s really no such thing as using your toothbrush as a substitute for proper interdental cleaning, and that’s why your dentist really will notice if you haven’t been flossing properly. A water flosser is best for something like that.
I feel like it’s more than that…
When I switched to electric 7 or 8 years ago, I really didn’t like it. It was super uncomfortable and tickled my mouth.
I just powered through it because I was told that I would get used to it.
Indeed I did get used to it and quickly began to feel that I had never actually properly brushed my teeth before going electric.
Part of what helps is the little extra pulse every 30 seconds and auto shut off after two minutes. Really keeps you on track with 30 seconds in each quadrant of your mouth.
Two minutes is a long time so having the timer built into the toothbrush is super helpful.
Only concern to note is that applying too much pressure and/or using the maximum vibration setting can be bad for your gums and cause recession.
Be very gentle with the electric toothbrush so that you do not cause any excessive gum recession.
Once you get used to electric, a conventional toothbrush will seem archaic.
I was surprise it was this low. The wording of the study result is a bit different, it’s not % of effectiveness, it’s a % reduction in plaque.
The evidence produced shows benefits in using a powered toothbrush when compared with a manual toothbrush. There was an 11% reduction in plaque at one to three months of use, and a 21% reduction in plaque when assessed after three months of use. For gingivitis, there was a 6% reduction at one to three months of use and an 11% reduction when assessed after three months of use. The benefits of this for long-term dental health are unclear.
That’s what effectiveness means, since removing dental plaque isn’t a binary thing. If you’re trying to remove plaque, then a percentage reduction is a corresponding increase in effectiveness. If a vaccine has a 20% reduction in disease compared to another vaccine, it’s 20% more effective. I’m pretty sure this comment isn’t just splitting hairs; it’s actually wrong in its pedantry.
I will add that a waterpik is a really nice tool to add to your dental hygiene routine.
I would like to taint this info with the knowledge that pik means ‘penis’ in Dutch
well i never had a penis in my mouth but i dont mind penises on my partners…
I’m not judging, just spreading useless knowledge
nice.
oh wait till I tell you what taint means!
You would, but chode you?
(Excuse the elaborate manner of the pun)
I also sprinkle a little baking soda on my toothpaste to further remove plaque
I used one for a bit due to this reason but I just don’t like them. I should try a water pick. I think if the electric would be setup to do both sides at once it would be useful.
But since I switched back to manual brushing, my teeth problems went away. Using the electric ones, I had two appointments where my dental bridge across several teeth had to be taken out and things fixed under it. I had no issues with it before the electrical toothbrush, and have not have any more since I am back to manual brushing.
Thetechnician is looking out for your health folks!
Not true. This is part of a scheme.
You need us all capable to act out the parts of your scheme.
- Floss
- Mouthwash
- Rinse
- Brush with electric toothbrush 45 full seconds getting full coverage.
- One real good spit.
- Don’t rinse
Enjoy perfect teeth
I trust approximately zero science about dental care, given the industry’s track record.
A systematic review by Cochrane is probably the most trustworthy source in medicine.
Yep, they (almost) literally wrote the book. I found their manual super useful when trying to deal with jerk articles that only post portions of their results. I don’t care that it’s “bad practice” to post raw data, it needs to become the standard.
Ah okay
Check the source before you make such statements
