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The Great Toothbrush Debate: Hard or Soft Bristles?
To brush with a soft bristled toothbrush or hard bristled toothbrush, that is that question.
The general public seems to have a split consensus on which type of toothbrush bristle is best for their teeth and gums. Yes, hard bristles are great at removing plaque and stain, but they also wear down something you don’t want to lose -- your tooth enamel. Enamel is the pearly, hard white part of the tooth that covers the inner, softer layers. Enamel is there to protect your teeth from harmful bacteria, so you’re not doing yourself any favors by scrubbing away at it with too-hard bristles. Wear away too much enamel and you might start experiencing uncomfortable symptoms like tooth sensitivity, yellowness, and rough uneven edges on your teeth as the inner layers become exposed.
By brushing thoroughly but gently with a soft bristled brush, you can get rid of bad bacteria and keep your teeth’s natural layer of protection.
At Bogota Dental Center, we recommend patient's use the Oral B Genius Electric Toothbrush. This intelligent toothbrush connects to your phone's Bluetooth and has the following capabilities:
- Position Detection which helps you brush every area for the right amount of time.
- Personalizable multicolor Smartring with real-time visual coaching and pressure control.
- Oral B App for a daily monitoring of your habits and personalized brushing routines.
It's like having your own personal hygienist! All brush heads come with soft bristles to protect your enamel and leave your mouth feeling fresh and clean, like you just had a professional cleaning.
Technology has come quite a long way! Did you know that toothbrushing tools date back to 3500-3000 BC when the Babylonians and the Egyptians made a brush by fraying the end of a twig?! Tombs of the ancient Egyptians have been found containing toothsticks alongside their owners. Around 1600BC, the Chinese developed “chewing sticks” which were made from aromatic tree twigs to freshen breath.
