I almost always read in the news/press that dentists recommend to brush teeth two times a day for 2-3 minutes.

This drives me crazy, because it does not make sense; The point for dental health is to systematical clean every surface of your teeth twice a day (and use inter-dental brushes/floss once a day). For me, brushing my teeth takes around 6 minutes, if I hurry up. For someone faster it might be possible in 1 minute.

So, why do dentists always give the 2-3 minutes recommendation?

  • rgb3x3@beehaw.org
    30·
    10 months ago

    Because it should take you about 2 minutes to brush your teeth.

    If you’re actually brushing for 6 minutes straight, you’re overdoing it and damaging your enamel and gums.

    Brush gently, floss thoroughly.

    • green_witch@beehaw.orgEnglish
      9·
      10 months ago

      Adding to this, also make sure to floss gently.

      My hygienist told me I was flossing too hard lol.

    • m-p{3}@lemmy.ca
      91·
      10 months ago

      One reason why I enjoy my electric toothbrush, as it vibrates every 30 seconds to tell you to switch to the next quadrant, up to 2 minutes. No guesswork, and it brushes better than I ever could using a regular toothbrush.

    • wolf@lemmy.zipOPEnglish
      4·
      10 months ago

      Seriously, I have no idea how one could brush teeth in 2 minutes. I brush gently, use the simple swipe away from the gum technique and just work systematic chewing surfaces, inner surfaces, outer surfaces. Each part gets 2-3 swipes. I had a professional dental cleaner teach this technique to me, and she also told me that she couldn’t finish within 3 minutes. (Do not misunderstand me; I would happily get away with 2 minutes.) BTW flossing is another interesting topic, AFAIK there is no study which can show that flossing helps your teeth/gum. (I floss daily, but I just cannot understand why there is no study which supports this practice.)

      • soupcat@sopuli.xyz
        6·
        10 months ago

        I only floss when I can’t get something out from my teeth, but I hate the feeling of things in my teeth so I often take a drink of water and aggressively rinse and like force the water through my teeth. Never had any dental issues, so 🤷

        • Admetus@sopuli.xyz
          3·
          10 months ago

          And stuff like meat getting stuck leads to pain in the gums and a nasty odour which is indeed rotting meat. Definitely getting that out!