What is the correct way to brush your teeth? And how long should you spend brushing them?

Question

Many dentist offices that I have visited has had A LOT of different " correct" ways to brush your teeth. I just would like to know if the correct way is up, and down, left, and right, or if there is any other " correct" way to brush your teeth. I also spend about 15 min. brushing mine. Is that good, or bad?

Answer 1

I've worked in a dental office assisting and stuff, and a lot of my family members are dentists, so I've had to grow up learning about the right way to brush your teeth. This is actually an EXCELLENT question, as you will find many people simply don't know. Therefore, I'm very glad you asked!

The "correct" way is actually a combination. Think of your mouth as having four quadrants. You have the top left, bottom left, top right, and bottom right fourths of your mouth. Generally you should spend 30 seconds per quadrant, focusing on moving your brush in little circles on your teeth. You want to also "brush" your gums in this manner. You can also take your brush and go up and down across your teeth, but it can be harder to do this in the back.

Also, you need to focus on the fact that each tooth has five surfaces that need to be cleaned. Of course you hear the fact that you need to floss frequently, and this is imperative. Those are two of the five surfaces when you take the floss down beside both sides of your tooth. Of course, the other three are the front, chewing surface, and back. You need to adequately brush ALL of the surfaces. It is also important to remember to brush your tongue afterwards (before you rinse) so that you can remove the plaque and everything that has collected on your tongue. Always floss before you brush for the same reasons. This will loosen things up and then you will brush it away better.

Another thing to remember is that more time and harder brushing is not necessarily BETTER. You need to brush WELL and get everything clean, but it does not mean that you need a hard-bristled brush where you scrub your teeth for 30 minutes a day. The goal is to remove the plaque, not polish a tire! If you brush too hard and too long, you can actually wear down the enamel on your teeth (the hard, protective top surface), and cause more problems.

Mouthwash can be useful if you are prone to gingivitis or your dentist recommends it. You probably don't need to use it every single time you brush, however.

The ideal dental care comes from brushing after you eat each meal (or 2-3 times a day), flossing once a day, and seeing your dentist twice a year, or more, if necessary.

Good luck! :-D

Answer 2

You should brush your teeth for a total of 2 minutes. When you brush the top teeth angle the toothbrush upward and brush them in a circular motion massaging your gums at the same time, when you brush the bottom teeth angle the brush downward in a circular motion massaging your gums also. When you brush the part of the teeth that you chew on just brush them straight and the front teeth brush them with the toothbrush going outward. Don't forget to floss. If you brush your teeth for 15 min. you can actually wear your teeth out. That is not good.

Answer 3

Brushing your teeth is very important to have good oral care. I don't believe their is just one correct way to brush your teeth. That has been a great debate topic for years. What is important is that you brush the front and back of ALL teeth at least twice a day. Remember that the purpose of brushing is to remove the excess plaque buildup before it hardens on the teeth (once that happens, it can only be removed by dental instruments). Another important step to having good clean teeth is to floss and use mouth wash regularly. This will also help provide healthy gums.

Answer 4

You are not supposed to brush back and forth like most people do. You tilt the brush at a 45 degree angle, and brush each tooth thoroughly and on all sides. It should take 2 to 3 minutes. 15 minutes is pretty excessive. If you are obsessed over getting your teeth whitened, then splurge 40 bucks or so and get some Whitestrips.

Answer 5

I take about 20 minutes interior the lavatory washing my face, brushing my teeth and flossing. I brush interior the morning and brush and floss at evening. 2 minutes of brushing is what the dentists say is the finest. Floss in the back of your back teeth, between your very last teeth and gums. there's a huge style of plaque that would construct up there. I propose that you reduce your soda eating (in case you drink it) and drink water truly. undesirable breath comes from bacteria on your tongue, bacteria have a problematic time residing on a tongue of a human being that beverages water extra many times. Plus, water is in good structure for you and could not turn your teeth yellow like soda can. Win-Win. good success!

Answer 6

My dentist says you should brush up and down for about 3 minutes. I always floss my teeth and then brush for about 2 mins.

Answer 7

Ideally, use a soft toothbrush. Medium and Hard brushes are too hard on the gums and can cause recession. Brush in small, soft circles and be sure to brush the front, top, and back of all teeth, as well massage your gums with the brush (also using small, soft circles). When you are finished, be sure to brush your tongue. As far as time, you should spend one minute per quadrant (quadrants = bottom left/bottom right/top left/top right).

Answer 8

You brush your teeth for 3 min.
In the front, you brush either up and down or in a circular motion.
In the back, you brush side to side.

Answer 9

the best way my dentist told me is to do circles. 15 min. for brushing is a LOT and can actually damage your gums because of all the scraping you are doing. you should go at least 2 min. and no more than 4.

Answer 10

I think just hit the back front and sides of all your teeth and your fine, it doesn't matter if you go left to right or in circles or whatever.

It only takes about 3 minutes to get your mouth clean. If you are seriously brushing for 15, that is bad for your enamel and gums.