How long have you had your current toothbrush? A lot of people hang onto their brushes for months, if not more than a year at a time. It’s not something that we actively think about replacing.
If you want to have a healthy mouth, though, you have to replace that brush often. They wear out, and once the bristles aren’t aligned in their proper position, the brush loses almost all of the efficacy it used to have.
In an effort to help you keep your mouth as clean as possible, let’s look at why you need a new toothbrush.
Bristles
The most important part of a brush are the bristles. Their alignment and stiffness make a huge difference in their efficacy. Bristles that are too hard will cause irritation in your gums, which could lead to infection or other issues. Your dentist gives out brushes that meet these criteria when you go in for a regular checkup.
Once those bristles are frayed, though, it’s time to get a new brush. That brush doesn’t have the ability to remove plaque from your teeth. Instead, it’s spreading all of that junk around.
Germs
A toothbrush spends a lot of time in your mouth, which means it’ll end up with a lot of bacteria no matter what. If you use the same brush for months, or even more than a year, you could possibly be brushing bacteria onto your teeth.
A simple phone call to 502-863-9340 can get you a direct brush recommendation from Dr. Stan Scalf.
Here at Stan Scalf DMD in Georgetown, Kentucky, we exist to serve you. We can’t wait to help!