Everyday oral care
Brushing, flossing, toothpaste choices, mouthwash, tongue cleaning and habits that protect teeth between visits.
- Everyday oral care
Sports drinks and enamel: a habit worth reviewing
Most sports drinks are acidic and many also contain sugar. Acid softens enamel directly (erosion), and sugar feeds plaque bacteria that make more acid (cavities). The…
- Everyday oral care
Cleaning your teeth when your hands do not cooperate: tools, grips and routines
The goal does not change: plaque has to come off every tooth surface twice a day with a fluoride toothpaste, and from between the teeth once a day. What changes is the…
- Everyday oral care
Plaque and tartar: what your hygienist means, and why only one comes off at home
Plaque is the soft, sticky film of bacteria that forms on your teeth every day. It is the direct cause of both cavities and gum inflammation, and it comes off with…
- Everyday oral care
Oil pulling: what the studies show, and why it does not replace brushing or check-ups
No. Oil pulling means swishing a spoonful of an edible oil around the mouth for several minutes and spitting it out. A small number of short, small studies suggest it…
- Everyday oral care
Caring for your mouth and your night guard: a daily routine and when to call
Brush and clean between your teeth before the guard goes in, so plaque is not trapped overnight. Rinse it with cool water before and after wearing it, brush it gently…
- Everyday oral care
Alcohol-free mouthwash: who might prefer it and what a rinse can and cannot do
An alcohol-free mouthwash is a reasonable choice for anyone who finds alcohol rinses sting or dry the mouth, for people with dry mouth or mouth sores, for older children…
- Everyday oral care
Tongue cleaning and bad breath: what it can fix and what it cannot
Often, yes, at least partly. Much everyday bad breath comes from bacteria living in the coating on the back of the tongue and from food debris and plaque left on and…
- Everyday oral care
Brushing after acidic drinks: when timing matters and what to do instead
Yes, waiting is sensible, but treat it as a habit rather than a strict rule. Acid from juice, soda, wine or stomach acid softens the outer enamel for a while, and…
- Everyday oral care
Charcoal toothpaste: what the evidence shows and what to check before using it
For most people, no: it is not a better choice than an ordinary fluoride toothpaste. A 2017 review in the Journal of the American Dental Association found no reliable…
- Everyday oral care
How much toothpaste adults and children should use, and why the amount differs
For adults and children who can reliably spit, a pea-sized amount of fluoride toothpaste, enough to coat the bristles, is the amount generally suggested; a strip the…
- Everyday oral care
Whitening toothpaste or professional whitening: what each one can change
A whitening toothpaste usually makes teeth look cleaner and a little brighter, but it does not usually change the color of the tooth itself. Most of these pastes work by…
- Everyday oral care
What fluoride toothpaste actually does for your enamel
Fluoride toothpaste helps enamel in two ways. It makes the enamel surface more resistant to the acids that plaque bacteria produce after you eat, so fewer minerals are…
- Everyday oral care
Traveling with crowns, implants or aligners: what to pack and what to do if something goes wrong
Pack the tools you use at home, plus the few items your dental work depends on: a soft toothbrush, fluoride toothpaste, the between-teeth tool that fits your crowns…
- Everyday oral care
Choosing toothpaste, rinses and "natural" oral care products: questions that beat the label
Judge an oral care product by what it has been shown to do for the jobs that matter at home, removing plaque, protecting enamel and gums, not by what it promises to pull…
- Everyday oral care
Home-care habits that can shorten the life of crowns, veneers, fillings and implants
Crowns, veneers, fillings and implant crowns cannot decay, but the tooth at their edges can, nearby gum and bone can become inflamed, and the materials can chip, scratch…
- Everyday oral care
Living with dry mouth: how to build a daily routine that protects your teeth
Yes, a dry mouth needs a different routine, because saliva normally rinses away food, neutralizes acid and helps repair early enamel damage. With less of it, cavities…
- Everyday oral care
Sugar-free gum and saliva: when chewing may help, and when it is not the answer
Yes, within limits. Chewing sugar-free gum after eating stimulates saliva, and saliva helps neutralize the acids plaque bacteria make from sugar, washes food away and…
- Everyday oral care
Cleaning between teeth when string floss is hard to use
String floss is not the only acceptable way to clean between your teeth. Interdental brushes, floss holders and pre-threaded picks, floss threaders and water flossers…
- Everyday oral care
Should you rinse your mouth right after brushing?
Spitting out the foam and not rinsing with water right away is a reasonable habit. Rinsing washes away part of the fluoride your toothpaste has just left on the teeth…
- Everyday oral care
Choosing a toothbrush when your gums have receded
Choose a soft or extra-soft toothbrush, manual or powered, with a head small enough to angle into the gum line, and pair it with light pressure and a technique a…
- Everyday oral care
A water flosser helps with access, but does it replace every other tool?
No. A water flosser does not replace brushing, and whether it can stand in for string floss or an interdental brush depends on your mouth. Reviews of short trials report…
- Everyday oral care
Electric or manual toothbrush: what matters more than the brand
Either kind can clean your teeth well. Both manual and powered toothbrushes remove plaque effectively when used properly: soft bristles, two minutes, twice a day, with…