Nikon vs Canon? Ford vs Chevy? Mucho Gusto vs Cafe Rio? OralB or Sonicare vs a regular toothbrush? Seriously, which toothbrush is the best to use?
The quick answer is if you use the toothbrush properly then any is just as effective. Problem is most people don’t use the toothbrush correctly. We can almost easily predict you brush way too hard already, and your toothbrush bristles that are labeled “Soft” are actually too stiff.
The biggest risk of brushing too hard is two fold: 1) your gums recede and 2) your teeth actually will wear away especially on the cheek side nearest the gums. The sequelae is your teeth to become plaque and decay ridden, loose, and/or fail. Though these effects take decades, to fix them either takes fillings, life-long deep cleanings as opposed to simple dental cleanings, surgery, and even extractions leading to dental implants...or just change the way you brush
When brushing we already know that we are to brush for 2 minutes and in small, gentle circles. However, we all have scrubbed dishes and know that grime does not come off immediately without scrubbing the dickens out of the dishes.
From personal experience, the second I stop focusing on brushing gently with small circles, I immediately revert back to what I had done my old life: brushing like I’m mopping the floors.
An electric toothbrush breaks that habit because you just hold it there and let the brush do the work, that’s the secret. Some like the OralB even get mad at you if you brush too aggressively.
SUMMARY
If you are going to brush with a manual toothbrush, the BEST one really is a Nimbus that we give to all patients after a cleaning. It’s more like a massage on your gums.
If you are going to brush with an automatic toothbrush, all of our staff at Central Point Family Dentistry agree to use the Sonicare. Don’t buy the OralB Genius. The OralB iO is rivaling the Sonicare but the cost is outrageously high. Also we recommend not buying an automatic toothbrush with all the bells and whistles. We liken it to a microwave. Your microwave at home has all these presets but how many times do you push the same 1-2 buttons and hit start no matter what you’re cooking? Same with the toothbrush. You’ll rarely use all those buttons so more expensive is not always better.
**As a side note, we ALWAYS sell automatic toothbrushes and individual heads at our Central Point Family Dentistry office at wholesale price.