It is advised to brush your teeth at least twice a day, but when? Just before bed is a gimme because you’re about to lie mostly still for 6+ hours. Best to not leave food particles to fester.
What’s the best time for an earlier brushing? After breakfast? After lunch? After work/school?
Plus, what’s up with TV and movies having breakfast scenes where they get up and head right out the door? Did they already brush and now they’re going to leave food to fester all day? Eww.
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Apparently I’m disgusting because I only brush and floss at night. I wish I was the sort of person who brushed after every meal but I just can’t be bothered. I haven’t had a cavity in years though, so I guess it works for me.
Same here, but I’ll chew a xylitol-containing gum after most meals and snacks. (not sorbitol, it doesn’t work.) Hard to find a good gum though - the only one I can get here is Mentos.
I, too, am lazy. I brush at nights only, because lazy. I go to the dentist every 12 months and they’re always stoked at how my teeth and gums look. Maybe it’s genetics.
Following the advice of my dentist, in the morning after finishing my coffee and in the evening before bed.
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I actually find it more enjoyable to have breakfast after my mouth is refreshed. I wouldn’t enjoy eating with the taste of old mouth juice all over my tongue
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With the exception of orange juice, any food I eat replaces the minty flavour with its own. I guess I just need that reset to “minty fresh” before eating (I’ve been conditioned by Big Toothpaste to associate minty with clean)
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That’s why I brush my teeth first, then shower, then have breakfast. The time I need to shower and prepare breakfast is enough for my mouth to return to normal.
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After showering.
As far as I know, getting cavities is a lot about genetics. I floss and brush after dinner and breakfast and don’t overthink it and I’ve been fine for many decades now.
Getting cavities is a lot about the prevelance of sugar and highly-refined carbs. Some people are more susceptible than others due to differences in saliva, but the typical western diet is horrible for your teeth.
It depends on the day for me, but usually it’s once a day at night because I synchronize it with my showering frequency. If I do it twice in a day, the first time is after breakfast unless I skip breakfast.
First thing after I wake up, very thoroughly with a soft toothbrush. I can’t start my day with gross mouth. Definitely never right after coffee (though I understand the impulse). I never seem to get around to it at night. My dentist seems satisfied. If I leave the house in the evening, I brush before I go out.
how can you sleep with “gross mouth”??
Just brush before going to sleep, like it’s a fixed part of the process… i’m in the bathroom right before bed anyway. Pee, brush teeth, shower/wash/comb, toss my clothes in the laundry basket…Because my mouth isn’t gross at night. Eating and drinking throughout the day keeps it neutral. I drink a lot of water. In the morning it’s just been sitting still all night and is gross to me. I don’t do a bathroom routine right before bed. I’m usually in the living room and go straight to bed. Maybe pee if I need to, but I change into comfy clothes as soon as I get home from work, and I shower in the morning
Typically, I brush and floss before bed. In the morning, I will rinse my mouth out to get a lot of the bacteria from overnight out of my mouth.
If I have the energy, I will brush about an hour after my morning snack and caffeine.
If I don’t have the energy, I will rinse my mouth out after breakfast.
I find rinsing my mouth out, while not as good as brushing, really helps freshen up my mouth.
twice or thrice a day?
Most people will say its generally after you eat but I personally believe it should be before and after you sleep (including naps). I noticed that after naps my mouth feels very weird and things taste different but brushing my teeth stops that. Cavities mainly form while you sleep not while you are awake so going about your normal day with dirty teeth isn’t going to harm you even though its a bit gross.
After breakfast I would think. Any other time would be rather inconvenient.
Morning after breakfast and at night before bed.
I brush a while after eating. My roomie brushes before breakfast and before bead.
Every time you finish a meal
Yup, that’s what my dentist recommends. If you do that, just make sure you have a toothbrush and toothpaste which doesn’t hurt your teeth :)
Dentists have a strong pro-brushing bias though.
This would be ideal, but some people work jobs where it’s not feasible.
I’ve always heard that but also been told to wait for some time after eating before brushing to not hurt your enamel? Not sure how true that is
That’s true, but it’s enough to just rinse your mouth with water before brushing your teeth to eliminate any acidity from the food, or just wait at least 30 minutes before brushing your teeth.
For breakfast if you drink milk and eat nothing acidic (like fruits) that would weaken the enamel, brushing after the meal is the best.
Also brushing your teeth does slightly damage your teeth, which salvia will repair. I don’t want sugar in my slightly damaged teeth, nor do I want sugar on them for the rest of the day, until I brush in the evening. I like to extend the duration of brushed teeth to the maximum. Meaning over night clean and after breakfast, til often evening when I eat once more. With midday being all clean without extra brushing.
But milk is (slightly) acidic, isn’t that a product to avoid as well before brushing?
