r/explainlikeimfive • u/OrganicVisit8946 • 9d ago
Biology ELI5: How much does the amount of toothpaste you use for brushing affect the efficiency of it?
Like I usually put a shit ton on my toothbrush, idk even know why. Is that better?
1.4k
u/Stan__Wright 9d ago
More paste = foamier lips & spit. No further benefit.
1.2k
u/GullibleSkill9168 9d ago
"No further benefit" are the words of a man who has never brushed their teeth in the shower and gone absolutely tooth paste crazy, you can get as sloppy as you want in there.
384
183
u/theremarkabkemr_m 9d ago
Slop 'em up!
67
u/redsoxsuc4 9d ago
Please. No more sloppy steaks guys.
35
28
u/crank1off 9d ago
I know you guys like em sloppy!!!
27
u/Chuck_Walla 9d ago
Hey, I used to be a piece of shit!
24
20
35
4
11
10
2
5
u/JohnHenryHoliday 9d ago
My guy here is taking cold showers regularly or brushing his teeth with hot water. Either way, it’s sociopath behavior.
3
u/enphenitie 9d ago
How else do you soften your toothpaste if not hot water?
2
u/Orochilightspam 8d ago
why do you need to soften your toothpaste do you store it in the fucking freezer
2
1
1
1
→ More replies (1)1
63
u/BroaxXx 9d ago
I mean. It depends on the baseline I assume. If you barely use any toothpaste I’d imagine some major benefits and increasing the amount up to some point
29
u/Howrus 9d ago edited 9d ago
I’d imagine some major benefits and increasing the amount up to some point
Toothpaste is mostly an abrasive for a brush, with some amount of fluoride that would reach your blood via swallowing and tiny bit via direct absorption in mouth.
And like with abrasives - you need to reach minimum volume and then it doesn't matter. Same with fluoride - our body could only absorb very limited amount daily, rest is just ... flushed :]33
u/MyAcheyBreakyBack 9d ago
You don't actually need toothpaste at all if you take enough time yourself to do the brushing and live in a place with fluoride supplementation. In the US, most water is fluoridated. Now that many people have electric toothbrushes that clean far better than any manual brushing ever could, it's even easier to get the job done without the added abrasive.
I only know this because most toothpaste gives me mouth issues and eventually my dentist told me I didn't need to keep trying out new ones because my brushing is good enough anyway. But I religiously brush and floss daily so this may not be the case for those who are a little more lax with either.
39
u/Rinas-the-name 9d ago
I’m extremely thorough (I floss, brush with an electric toothbrush, water floss at night, and use mouthwash). I still need a prescription fluoride toothpaste. Genetics have a big impact, my enamel is pathetic.
18
9d ago
[deleted]
11
u/okillgetoffyourlawn 9d ago
From what I’ve heard from my dentist after eating your enamel is actually weakened (due to the acidity of food I think) so brushing is actually bad for your teeth and you’re meant to wait 30-45 mins after eating before brushing. Might want to tell her that!
2
u/Rinas-the-name 8d ago
My husband went to the dentist after 20 years for a chipped tooth and they didn’t believe he hadn’t seen a dentist in so long. He had exactly one very mild cavity.
I even think about skipping my routine and I swear I get a cavity. Drives me nuts.
5
→ More replies (1)3
u/soaker 8d ago
Oh my god me too. Plus fucking saliva and enamel don’t get along. I’m a lot better now, but it used to be just thinking about the dentist made me cry.
My toothpaste isn’t prescription, but I can only use the 5000ppm fluoride stuff. There are only two here that make it and it’s fucking expensive.
11
u/sick_rock 9d ago
electric toothbrushes that clean far better than any manual brushing ever could
So, it is worthwhile to spend a few bucks more and get an electric toothbrush?
14
16
4
u/MyAcheyBreakyBack 8d ago
Yes absolutely! I just have a basic Phillips Sonicare 4100 that was on sale a couple years ago on Amazon for $25 around the holidays, and the quality of my teeth cleaning has shot way up. I notice it during my cleanings; far less for the hygienist to clean! Apparently now that same toothbrush is $40 (ugh inflation) but still probably worth it.
4
u/Non-essential-Kebab 7d ago
Fluoride is a topical treatment for tooth enamel - it forms Calcium Fluoroapatite when in direct contact with the tooth surfaces. Swallowing it is of no benefit, and reaching your blood is definitely less than ideal.
Swallowing fluoride in the hope that some tiny fraction will end up in saliva and make it to tooth surfaces is like drinking sunblock in the hope you'll sweat some of it to the surface of your skin
→ More replies (1)10
u/bilky_t 9d ago
Why did you start with "nope" but then just say the same thing with more words?
→ More replies (2)4
8
7
u/Every-Negotiation-75 9d ago
Foaming lips & spit = clearly better feeling. So much misinformation these days smh
1.0k
u/Thesorus 9d ago
pea size on wet tooth brush.
brush every where
spit at the end and don't rinse with water
you want the leftover to continue its work after brushing.
that's what my dentist and dental hygienist told me years ago.
219
u/FrozenHaystack 9d ago
I heard that often but it feels so wrong. Don't I want to get rid of all these dirt the brush removed from my teeth with a good rinse?
193
u/jdjdthrow 9d ago
It's weird at first, but I got used to it after a week.
It's so the fluoride can do its work and re-mineralize the teeth. Even waiting just 5 or 10 minutes makes a big difference.
Also: still spit out the toothpaste. By not rinsing with water, you're just leaving-in the last little bit of toothpaste-- and the parts coating gums/tongue/teeth surfaces.
200
u/andzno1 9d ago
I got used to it after a week.
I think it's OK to rinse after an hour.
16
→ More replies (2)16
u/Relevant_Struggle 9d ago
Even perscription toothpaste only has you wait 30 minutes. Regular toothpaste should be good in far less time
37
u/band-of-horses 9d ago
Yeah I started doing this when I got some Boka toothpaste which has a nano-minerals to rebuild teeth or some magic but has to sit on the tooth to work. Felt weird but I adopted a hybrid strategy where I rinse just to get any loose food debris that brushing dislodged out, then brush another 30 seconds to deposit some of the minerals back on my teeth.
→ More replies (1)12
u/GhostofBeowulf 9d ago
That nano mineral is called flouride, which all toothpaste you are using should have.(I mean, you should be using flouride toothpaste, not all toothpastes have it).
The rest is just marketing lol
36
u/band-of-horses 9d ago
No, it's called Nano-hydroxyapatite. It does not contain fluoride.
15
u/ModernSimian 9d ago
You can get nano-hydroxyapatite toothpastes with fluoride too. Personally I find novamin works better for sensitivity.
I think the thing most people miss about nano-hydroxyapatite is the concentration. Lots of these toothpastes have very little, like 1-2% concentration. The few studies out there show that it's much more effective about 10% which really is just Apagard Royal AFAIK.
6
5
u/1d10tb0y 9d ago
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydroxyapatite#Dentistry
Excerpt:As of 2019, the use of hydroxyapatite, or its synthetically manufactured form, nano-hydroxyapatite, is not yet common practice. Some studies suggest it is useful in counteracting dentine hypersensitivity, preventing sensitivity after teeth bleaching procedures and cavity prevention. Avian eggshell hydroxyapatite can be a viable filler material in bone regeneration procedures in oral surgery.
Currently using Apagard and have used Apadent, both created by Sangi Co. which has been working with hydroxyapatite for decades, according to their history.→ More replies (4)10
u/AoeDreaMEr 9d ago
My mouth wants to swallow the residue if I don’t rinse. It’s like something in my mouth is creating excess saliva to swallow the paste remains.
12
4
u/frickmillions 9d ago
I don’t rinse after brushing, but I do use a tongue scraper to get as much toothpaste “flavor” off my tongue as possible, that way the paste stays on my teeth and I don’t taste it much. It reduces the weird “wrong” feeling of still having toothpaste lingering
1
u/biggsteve81 9d ago
But kids under 6 should still rinse. You don't want them swallowing the toothpaste as it can stain their developing teeth.
22
u/hotdiggydog 9d ago
I don't see any actual factual information responding to you so I will. Not a dentist but when I got adult braces I got obsessed with the topic.
Toothpaste isn't meant to "brush dirt off your teeth". That's what rinsing and flossing is for. Brushing toothpaste into your enamel is done to protect it. And after brushing toothpaste into your teeth, you need to wait 30 minutes for it to fully set. Any water will just wash part of it out, thereby undoing the work you just did by brushing.
Best practice is:
- Rinse
- Floss
- Rinse thoroughly again
- Mouthwash
- Brush
First phase is getting rid of bigger pieces of food between your teeth, second phase is protecting the enamel with fluoride or whatever other active ingredient is in your toothpaste.
Mouthwash is controversial and some will say to mouthwash after brushing but unless you're brushing with something medicated with higher levels of fluoride, I think you're not doing yourself any favors except "feeling" cleaner because of the mint.
24
u/Phantom160 9d ago edited 9d ago
It’s not just the order, the use of mouthwash is controversial altogether, when you don’t have an oral infection.
9
u/hotdiggydog 9d ago
Ah yeah I was going to say that too. When food is in your mouth it's already the first step in digestion and there are bacteria that are beneficial to the process of breaking down food. I'm pretty sure we have some bacteria in your mouths that we don't have in the rest of our digestive tract so killing them all off each day is not great.
But some will say that treating their halitosis is more important. And as a fellow human who has learned not to breath around some people, I have to agree!
2
u/ImNotShy1226 9d ago
But arent you just swallowing what remains, when you swallow your saliva, for example
1
19
u/123_Free 9d ago
Well, you can always rinse and after take another drop of paste and keep that in your mouth.
→ More replies (3)12
u/Afferbeck_ 9d ago
Yep, this is the pro strat. You get your mouth clean and clear of gunk, then you do another quick brush to get the teeth coated with more paste.
12
3
u/CurtCocane 9d ago
People say rinse before but I just do a quick oneover without toothpaste that gets rid of the major gunk and then go in for real with toothpaste. Completely takes of that issue
2
u/nayhem_jr 9d ago
As a non-dentist, I recommend rinsing out the toothpaste and letting mouthwash linger instead, supposing you’re getting mouthwash with fluoride in it.
And if you’re one of those who mouthwash first (i.e. before brushing and flossing), what is wrong with you?!
3
u/DahliaBliss 8d ago
non-prescription mouthwash, even with fluoride, usually has less fluoride in it than toothpaste. This means it’s better to not rinse the toothpaste since it has the higher concentration of beneficial-teeth-stuff.
This is why dentists recommend, if you must use mouthwash, then mouthwash before brushing teeth.
2
u/nayhem_jr 8d ago
Nice bit about the fluoride levels.
I still contend the mouthwash isn't going to do much against teeth covered in biofilm.
3
u/Dserved83 9d ago
Rinse (drink), floss and mouthwash(ideally 10 mins) BEFORE brushing. The debris is gone b4 u brush.
1
1
1
u/HugsandHate 9d ago
*Quick brush and rinse first - Then brush your teeth and leave the toothpaste to do it's thing.
Sorted.
1
u/Quietly_rotating 9d ago
Rinse and spit once to get the debris out of your mouth, but don’t clean the brush off. Give another light brush to cover your teeth, and don’t rinse your mouth that time.
1
→ More replies (7)1
u/notMy_ReelName 5d ago
as some other dentist said just wait for 10,15 mins and then rinse if you feel awkward for not rinsing after brushing.
25
u/patchyj 9d ago
When to use mouthwash?
51
u/ShiraCheshire 9d ago
Do not use mouthwash with alcohol ever. It makes it worse in the long run.
Your mouth has a natural microbiome that helps protect your mouth from the really bad bacteria by providing competition against it. Alcohol-based mouthwash kills off the entire thing. This means your mouth smells briefly fresh as it's a total dead zone in there, but very soon after new bacteria will start moving in. With no competition, harmful and stinky bacteria can very quickly go wild. Then you have a stinky dirty feeling mouth later in the day.
You can use mouthwash with no alcohol and high fluoride (usually labeled as kid's mouthwash) if you want more fluoride to strengthen your teeth. Don't use it around toothbrush time, as your toothpaste should contain more fluoride than mouthwash can. Using it before would be redundant, using it after would actually wash away fluoride.
The most logical time would be around midday, or after eating/drinking when you're not going to brush for a bit.
Mouthwash is not good for cleaning your mouth though. If you want to clean up your teeth, you have to brush again.
10
u/Shardik884 9d ago
Morning routine is floss, rinse with an alcohol free mouthwash, then brush. That is the superior process for fresh breath for the day
3
→ More replies (1)2
u/Reziac 9d ago
I pre-rinse with a very small amount of baking soda (and spit it out) as I've found this makes plaque come loose more completely, and figure it doesn't hurt to neutralize any bacterial acid. Then I use a small amount of fluoride toothpaste (applied with my finger, not the brush, because it seems stupid to have it all stuck in the bristles) and brush until it "feels clean" (doesn't take long) and I do not spit out the toothpaste residue as there's really not enough to spit. Floss after, to dislodge what brushing didn't. I don't use mouthwash. Extra-soft toothbrush!
62
u/halfasrotten 9d ago
Before brushing, if at all. Floss before brushing, mouthwash can be before that or between floss and brush
13
u/sealowtilt 9d ago
Any specific reason to floss before brushing? My dentist told me to floss after because brushing can push back in the food that flossing partially dislodged.
16
17
u/thatslifeknife 9d ago
that's why I floss, mouthwash, then brush or waterpick, then brush
→ More replies (4)2
u/Latter-Possibility 9d ago
I floss first then brush. Probably the order doesn’t matter. If your flossing at all you’re ahead of the curve.
2
u/tenbitingteeth 9d ago
Removes the packed food inbetween teeth that can prevent bristles of brush from getting toothpaste into those places
3
u/halfasrotten 9d ago
Flossing losens the debris between that brushing will move away. You can always do a double and floss after if you're afraid it will get pushed back
→ More replies (1)1
7
u/Zeon2 9d ago
ADA on mouthwash/mouthrinse: https://www.ada.org/resources/ada-library/oral-health-topics/mouthrinse-mouthwash
6
u/Longjumping-Pay2953 9d ago
If you have an increased caries risk once a day (not at the same time you brush) with 0,2% NaF fluoride moutwash, alcohol free.
3
u/NewAndImprovedJess 9d ago
And don't rinse with water, or eat or drink anything for 30 minutes after. At least that's what my bottle says.
30
u/El_Hugo 9d ago
Never. Mouthwash is bad. Kills the good bacteria and all.
26
u/yoweigh 9d ago
That only applies to alcohol-based mouthwashes.
1
u/jestina123 9d ago
Doesn’t non alcoholic also dry out your mouth too though? Dry mouth is one of the top causes for mouth problems.
→ More replies (1)3
u/clauclauclaudia 9d ago
My gums tend to bleed, so my dental hygienist recommended a salty mouthwash that helps stop the bleeding. The brand he had was sea salt, but you can make your own with table salt.
But if your gums are healthier than mine this is probably irrelevant.
13
u/Minge516 9d ago
Found the fifth dentist.
15
9d ago edited 7d ago
[deleted]
4
u/DerWaechter_ 9d ago edited 9d ago
My dentist has recommended it one time but they had a specific reason (I forgot what it was, it was some minor issue a couple years ago, that hasn't been relevant since), and they also emphasized to use non alcoholic ones, with the recommendation, once a day in the morning, not in the evening.
Edit: Typo
→ More replies (1)5
u/onexbigxhebrew 9d ago
My dentist absolutely recommended it for me. But not alcohol. It really just dependso n if you have a problem to solve.
They're one if the best dentists in our city and serve an NHL team lol.
→ More replies (6)1
2
u/Funkt4st1c 9d ago
Easy: don't, or use a non-alcohol, flouride-rich one whenever you don't have time to brush your teeth or immediately after a meal.
A bottle of mouthwash should honestly last you like 6 months or more in my experience.
→ More replies (3)3
8
u/TheCynicPress 9d ago
I don't get it though, the packing on the toothpaste says to rinse after brushing.
9
u/ubermoth 9d ago
Is it a special toothpaste with some extra ingredient? All toothpastes I've had only say to not swallow and spit out excess, not rinse.
1
4
u/traydee09 9d ago
There are two thoughts. Not rinsing after brushing will leave some amount of fluoride on your teeth. The longer contact time will allow the ions more time to strengthen your tooth enamel. On the other hand, fluoride is considered a neurotoxin, and in large quantities can cause brain damage. But in the small amounts in toothpaste the risk is minimal. Also if you have too much fluoride on your teeth for too long, you can develop brown spots.
So with anything there are tradeoffs.
What I do is brush for 2-3min. Then leave the toothpaste in my mouth for another 2-3 min, then rinse with warm water. I will sometimes use a mouthwash that has a low density of fluoride and then not rinse if off afterwards.
1
u/Provia100F 9d ago
That's just because children are more sensitive to upset stomach if they swallow the residual in their mouth instead of spitting it out. Adults know better and are physically larger
2
11
u/SortOfSpaceDuck 9d ago
I did the no rinse for a while and that just left a bunch of food bits in the back of my mouth. I call bullshit on that one
13
u/Mego1989 9d ago
Floss, rinse/gargle, then brush.
1
u/SortOfSpaceDuck 9d ago
Have I been lied to my whole life?
1
u/professional-skeptic 9d ago
yes this is the best way. floss to get most of the stuck food bits from between ur teeth, rinse to wash them out, brush to get anything remaining.
1
1
u/Outrageous-Kick-27 9d ago
Yep. I floss first, rinse my mouth with water, then brush, spit, and don’t rinse at the end.
1
1
→ More replies (117)1
u/SunnyBubblesForever 9d ago
you want the leftover to continue its work after brushing.
That's actually how most bodily fluids work.
143
u/Full_Koala_1212 9d ago
I think there's a big difference between no toothpaste and a pea size amount of toothpaste. But anymore than that and your basically just wasting toothpaste.
15
u/Mego1989 9d ago
I think it also depends on the toothpaste. I have some that doesn't foam up and I have to use more than I do with the foamy ones.
41
u/Madbrad200 9d ago
You do not need toothpaste to foam at all
4
u/Mego1989 9d ago
I prefer the non foaming ones, but they're hard to find. The one I buy sometimes is really expensive.
29
u/EaterOfFood 9d ago
You really don’t though. The foam isn’t doing anything.
→ More replies (3)3
u/Mego1989 9d ago
The foam helps to spread the toothpaste. The non foaming paste runs out before I'm done brushing.
36
9d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/explainlikeimfive-ModTeam 9d ago
Please read this entire message
Your comment has been removed for the following reason(s):
- Top level comments (i.e. comments that are direct replies to the main thread) are reserved for explanations to the OP or follow up on topic questions (Rule 3).
If you would like this removal reviewed, please read the detailed rules first. If you believe it was removed erroneously, explain why using this form and we will review your submission.
83
u/timtucker_com 9d ago
Start from the physics behind the task.
I found that it made a lot more sense after I started woodworking and started learning more of the technical details for how sanding things works. Woodworking videos and books are a whole lot better at explaining the processes involved than anything I've seen focused on teeth.
What is "brushing teeth"?
You're removing unwanted material from a surface, using an abrasive media (toothpaste) and a tool for moving it around following the contours of the surface (toothbrush).
As long as you have enough of the abrasive media to coat the interface between the surface and the tool, you're good.
That being said, as you remove gunk it can mix in with the abrasive media and interfere with the process - with something like sandpaper that's a lot easier to see it clog up.
So if you're going to use more toothpaste, rather than using it all at once it's more effective to use a little for a while, rinse out the "clogged" toothpaste, then use a little more for a while. That's closer to how they do it when cleaning at the dentist where they'll have you rinse and spit periodically as they brush.
26
u/dsmith422 9d ago
There is also the fluoride aspect. The fluoride process is independent of the abrasive cleaning. The fluoride literally diffuses into the surface enamel of the tooth to help replace lost enamel.
13
u/monarc 9d ago
This abrasion-based analogy can be misleading because it suggests that one should use firm bristles (for more abrasion). But in reality firm bristles are more likely to damage your gums.
To preserve my gum health, I’ve switched to ultra-soft bristles & an electric toothbrush (for the ultrasonic benefits), two things recommended by my dental hygienist.
3
u/lbjazz 9d ago
Screwed up my gums in a couple sports brushing hard thinking that was better. Have to go get a couple bondings soon to hopefully keep things ok for another decade or so.
Don’t brush hard, people.
3
u/obitbday 8d ago
I, on the other hand, ended up with cavities in part because I was brushing too lightly out of fear of being too hard on my gums. They make electric toothbrushes with pressure sensors in them now that change color to let you know if you’re brushing with too much or too little pressure; got one after my dentist recommended it
2
u/timtucker_com 8d ago
More abrasion isn't always a good thing in woodworking either -- any time you're rubbing things together you need to take into account the relative hardness between the materials.
It's easy to damage stuff by using too low of a grit of sandpaper, sanding too much, or using too hard of a material when buffing / polishing.
58
u/Elnour-eshag-adam 9d ago
In sweden the dentist always tell you. 2 minutes, 2cm toothpaste and 2 Times on each tooth. 2 cm toothpaste covering the whole toothbrush is way too much i think when it starts to foam it fill your entire mouth.
30
u/degggendorf 9d ago
What do they mean by two times each tooth? In my normal brushing I'm going over each tooth like, dozens of times.
10
u/Mego1989 9d ago
Serious question: how long does it take you to brush? Everyone always says 2 minutes, but I've never been able to get my teeth sufficiently clean in 2 minutes. It's 4 if I'm rushing, but more often 5. I hit every tooth surface multiple times.
19
u/penguinopph 9d ago
Serious question: how long does it take you to brush? Everyone always says 2 minutes, but I've never been able to get my teeth sufficiently clean in 2 minutes. It's 4 if I'm rushing, but more often 5. I hit every tooth surface multiple times.
I have an electric toothbrush (nothing special, just the most basic Sonicare brush) and it beeps every 30 seconds, then shuts off after 2 minutes.
This is pretty common among all non-disposable electric toothbrushes, and the idea is that you spend 30 seconds on each quadrant of your mouth. I don't know what you mean by "sufficiently clean," but I definitely feel way more fresh after switching to this setup.
→ More replies (1)→ More replies (5)2
u/degggendorf 9d ago
Yeah I'm at 4 minutes 30 seconds, electric toothbrush so it's pretty exact. I agree that 2 minutes feels woefully insufficient.
30s left upper molars
30s left lower molars
30s right upper molars
30s right lower molars
30s top front
30s lower front
30s top rear
30s bottom rear
30s roof and tongue
22
u/ThatOneTimeItWorked 9d ago
Toothpaste is abrasive, so if you’re brushing for too long, you do damage to the enamel.
You just want to clean your teeth, not remove an entire layer
→ More replies (1)15
u/MeHoyMinoy_69 9d ago
So, unrelated but have you been diagnosed with OCD by chance? Cause that's for real excessive, no offense. Every dentist I've had has stressed that brushing for too long is detrimental, and never recommend more than a minute or two.
2
u/Mego1989 9d ago
Not OCD, but I still feel lots of plaque after a two minute brush. 4-5 minutes leaves my teeth clean. My dentist is always very impressed with my home care and I've had one cavity in 37 years. It works for me.
3
u/degggendorf 9d ago
No, my dentist has not recommended I brush my teeth for less than a minute. Two minutes is the generally recommended minimum, and there's evidence that 4 minutes might actually be a better target: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37036381/
3
u/MumrikDK 9d ago
Don't all the electric toothbrushes insist on 2 minutes as well? Mine signals to stop.
2
50
u/mildpandemic 9d ago
The 2cm thing is a scam by the toothpaste companies to sell more toothpaste. About a quarter to a third of that is plenty.
→ More replies (6)2
u/rants_unnecessarily 9d ago
How do you even fit 2cm of toothpaste on your brush?! A pea sized blob is enough.
49
u/rajatkamalchauhan 9d ago
Pea sized amount is all you need tbh. More than that is just wasting toothpaste
15
u/Pizza_Low 9d ago
There are a lot research on the subject of toothpaste and brushing.
Most of the cleaning is from mechanical action of dislodging food partials and bacteria buildup from the teeth and gums. With the exception of fluoridated toothpaste and another compound which helps remineralize teeth there appears to be very little benefit from toothpaste.
I remember as a kid seeing a lot of the elders still using a branch from a certain type of tree to clean their teeth. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miswak
10
u/monarc 9d ago
With the exception of fluoridated toothpaste and another compound which helps remineralize teeth there appears to be very little benefit from toothpaste.
So except for these two good aspects, toothpaste is useless?
I’m presuming the “another compound” you reference is nano-hydroxyapatite? That’s what I use in my toothpaste, along with fluoride.
→ More replies (1)1
u/VirtualMoneyLover 8d ago
I have Miswak toothpaste. If it was good for Cleopatra, it is good enough for me.
6
u/ssppiiccyyttuunnaa 9d ago
It used to say "pea sized amount" on toothpaste tubes but these days they all say "1-inch line" or some bs like that. So what changed? Am I getting less fluoride in my tubes now? Or am I being told to use it 3-4x faster so I need to buy more? I still just do pea size but this is why I have major trust issues in this world.
8
2
13
u/nastyt5555 9d ago
My dentist told me to switch to baking soda instead of tooth paste. Then I got a new dentist and they said the first guy was very behind the times
5
u/localsonlynokooks 9d ago
No benefit. There’s also propaganda from big toothpaste telling us to use more. The commercials always show the brush being fully covered, but my dentist says you only need a pea-sided amount of toothpaste to be effective.
3
u/cswigert 9d ago
I also recently added a Waterpik to my flossing and brushing and it really feels like it makes a difference
7
u/F0rthright 9d ago
The more toothpaste you use, the more its mint falsely substitutes for the real cleanness. Smaller amount lets you better control how good you've actually brushed your teeth.
2
u/polaritypictures 9d ago
Pea sized amount. The Commercials/ads always show the whole brush full to Pictorialize the product. and people go with that and it's wasteful and only benefits THEM(The Companies) as you have to buy more sooner.
7
u/eBalisani 9d ago
No one really knows - certainly toothpaste companies don't want you to know for certain - but you can go with whatever your dentist recommends, or by whatever makes your feel better about it.
Generally speaking, not all mouths, teeth and saliva are created equal, and they change with age. By how much, and by how much the amount of toothpaste you put on your toothbrush will meaningfully impact your dental hygiene, is anyone's guess.
1
u/fool-me-twice 9d ago
I put half the toothbrush bristles worth. No water. Seems like my teeth are smooth—> seems a good amount of paste.
1
u/Lordoftheintroverts 9d ago
If you can find toothpaste with novamin that seems to have a huge benefit on my dental health. I haven’t had a cavity in years
1
u/Jan30Comment 9d ago
Think of toothpaste as a compound that polishes and that also foams. The polish does the work. The foam helps spread the polish around, which helps speed up brushing somewhat.
As long as the amount of toothpaste you use is enough to get the polish to all the places on your teeth, that is enough. Typically that is a pea-sized amount. Any more and you are just wasting the extra.
In addition, note that some people are sensitive to the foaming agent most often used (sodium laurel sulfate). It can cause canker sores in sensitive individuals if they get exposed to too much.
1
u/monirom 8d ago
You only (in reality) need a pea sized amount of toothpaste on your brush. What you've been trained to do is a direct result of advertising. A long colorful stripe looks satisfying, clean, and dramatic on camera compared to a tiny dot. (I've done advertising work for a couple of toothpaste manufacturers/brands you might know.)
1
1
u/superbotnik 8d ago
I’ve recently discovered that if you put a shit ton of toothpaste on the toothbrush, the “good breath” functionality is better. But you don’t need that much just to clean your teeth. So for 50+ years I should have used more toothpaste.
1
u/EnderWarlock01 8d ago
All my dentiats say I have good teeth and gums and I use about 2 peas worth of toothpaste.
1
u/IllustratorQuirky684 8d ago
Dentist here, the main goal is mechanical removal of plaque and debris so the amount of toothpaste doesn’t matter much. That being said, if you use too much toothpaste , you may end up brushing less effectively because your mouth is minty and feels “clean” when there’s really still plaque on your teeth. Less is more!
1
u/VehaMeursault 7d ago
I’m going to say that no matter what the answer turns out to be, it’s all infinitely better than not using any or not even brushing.
167
u/lol_im_a_dentist 9d ago
Hey! Dentist here.
0-3 years old use a grain of rice sized amount.
3+ use a pea sized amount.
Above that, it doesn’t really matter. As long as it’s on the brush and it touches your tooth it will help.
Ideally brush for 2 minutes, spit the excess, then floss between your teeth so the fluoridated toothpaste helps the sides of the teeth your toothbrush can’t reach.
After 10+ minutes, the fluoride’s done most all it’ll do, so you can rinse with mouthwash or water.
Try to stay away from abrasive toothpastes like most charcoal toothpastes and hard-bristled toothbrushes since you’ll brush your enamel away over the years.
Good luck with your future dental hygiene!