The Most Common Dental Myths pt.2

“Brushing hard is the way to go”, “you just inherit your bad teeth”, “‘you should brush after every meal.” These and many misconceptions like these are ingrained in our culture, and are doing a lot of harm.

5. “Chewing gum is like brushing your teeth, right?”

While chewing gum does do good things for your oral hygiene, it removes plaque and increases saliva production which kills bacteria and increases the amount of minerals in your mouth and covering your teeth, it is no substitute for at home oral care.

6. “Teeth whitening is not bad for teeth”

While it is not explicitly harmful, you should be careful! Bleaching involves chemical reactions, some of which are not good for your mouth, and the bleaching material gets into the cracks in your enamel and the gaps between fillings and the tooth itself, and this can result in nerve damage. FYI: crowns and bridges cannot be whitened, and the effects of tooth whitening weares off in 6 months.

7. “You only need to change your toothbrush when your bristles are all poking everywhere”

It is worth it to invest in a new toothbrush every other month. Toothbrushes start to reduce in efficiency by 30% after just 12 weeks. The average household buys 0.8 toothbrushes per person on average, while that number should 2 or 3. Protip: after you have a herpes outbreak or a cold, get a new toothbrush, this way, you can be

sure that you are not reinfecting yourself with your toothbrush.

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