Once your only decision when buying a new toothbrush was whether to choose one with soft, medium or hard bristles. Now there is a large array of different types of toothbrushes available, plus electric toothbrushes. So, which kind should you buy? Is an electric toothbrush a better choice than a manual one? Dentists say that good results can be achieved using both types, if you use the correct brushing technique. The correct technique involves being able to remove all the plaque, including the hard to reach places between your teeth, without brushing so hard you cause damage to your teeth and gums. If you have difficulty doing an excellent job using a normal brush, an electric brush could be an advantage.
The Advantages of an Electric Toothbrush
1. Gives your teeth a full clean.
Dentists recommend that you clean your teeth for a full two minutes, twice a day. This means cleaning in each quadrant of your mouth for 30 seconds each. This time is very easy to underestimate, and maybe you feel as if you have brushed for ages, but only one minute may have passed.
This problem is easily solved by buying an electric toothbrush that includes a 2 minute timer, to ensure you continue cleaning for the correct length of time. By using an electric toothbrush, your teeth will get more cleaning time in the 2 minutes than with a normal brush. Hand brushing gives your teeth 300 strokes per minute compared with approximately 1000 using an electric brush.
2. Easier to fight gum disease.
By using an electric toothbrush, you will find it far easier to clean the places you usually miss when doing a manual clean. You will be able to clean really well around your gum line where a build up of plaque causes gingivitis to begin. Also, the bristles on the rotating head of your electric toothbrush will reach further in between your teeth to remove plaque.
3. Easier to use.
If you are unfortunate enough to have hand arthritis or some other motor disability that makes it hard for you to use a normal toothbrush, an electric toothbrush would be ideal for you. Its much bigger handle would be easier for you to hold and manipulate. You would just have to put it in your mouth and let it do all the hard work to clean all your tooth surfaces properly.
4. Encourages children to enjoy cleaning their teeth.
If you are a parent, you will know that children seem to be allergic to cleaning their teeth! It can be a major battle just to get them into the bathroom to pick up their toothbrush. An electric toothbrush can help you win this battle once and for all. Buy a colourful child-friendly electric toothbrush with pictures and music. Some also come with a handle in the shape of a mermaid or a car, for example. An electric toothbrush like this, will be so much fun, and be so easy to use, there will be no more teeth cleaning battles.
Are there any disadvantages to using an electric toothbrush?
The initial cost to buy one is the main disadvantage. While normal toothbrushes only cost a few pounds, a high quality electric one might cost around 80 pounds. Then of course, you still have to replace the worn brush heads. But you might save money on dental bills instead.
Overall, how well you clean your teeth is more important than which type of toothbrush you use. But an electric toothbrush definitely wins when considering ease of use, convenience and the results that can be obtained.
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