Dental Clinic Bossley Park – Old Toothbrushes
A generation or two ago people would clean their teeth with generic toothbrushes, because that was the only thing available. These brushes were simple devices with stiff hard bristles. The cleaning did go a long way to preventing decay, but the stiff bristles were later found to be the cause of worn enamel. It is little wonder that dental problems were common, as were dentures in older people.
Today we have many options for toothbrushes, all of them an improvement over the technology used by our grandparents. Conventional toothbrushes used today look similar to the brushes of several decades ago, but today’s brushes have softer bristles. This greatly reduces wear on the enamel, so the teeth do not wear away over time. Other options today include various electric toothbrushes.
Dental Clinic Bossley Park – Types of Toothbrush.
Conventional, manual, toothbrushes work the same way as they always did – we clean the teeth by the physical action of moving the brush. But the soft bristles reduce wear. And the materials used to make the toothbrush can be more environmentally friendly. For example, Recyclable plastic or bamboo can be used to make the brush handle.
Electric Toothbrushes – Dental Clinic Bossley Park
The first electric toothbrushes appeared in the late 1950s. These literally had to be plugged into the wall for electrical power. Such limitations meant they could not be easily used in countries where bathrooms power sockets were illegal. An even in countries where they could be used they were bulky, heavy and awkward.
Some electric toothbrushes of the 1970s seemed rather gimmicky. They vibrated, but did little else. The user still had to physically move the brush back and forth across the teeth to actually do any cleaning. But by the 1990s electric toothbrushes had moving heads, which means they cleaned quickly and efficiently when simply moved across the teeth.
Electric toothbrushes clean at least as well as conventional toothbrushes, but require far less effort. This makes them ideal for children, who also enjoy the novelty factor of an electric brush, and for people who have limited use of their hands. As long as we reach all the teeth the toothbrushes will clean the entire mouth.
Sonic Toothbrushes – Dental Clinic Bossley Park
Different electric toothbrushes will oscillate at different speeds, depending on the model and manufacture. Some models offer a choice of speeds. Faster speed toothbrushes in the 20 to 20000 oscillation range are called sonic toothbrushes. Faster speeds may mean faster or slightly better cleaning, but otherwise the principle is the same.
Ultrasonic Toothbrushes – Dental Clinic Bossley Park
Ultrasonic toothbrushes are electric toothbrushes that work on a different principle. They vibrate at a very high speed, between 1 and 3 million times per second. This high-speed vibration quickly destroys bacteria and plaque. This works even when the toothbrush is not quit touching the area being cleaned. So the space between the teeth will be cleaned by the ultrasonic vibration when we use the toothbrush to clean the front and back of each tooth. The ultrasonic vibration should also help fight bacteria under the gumline.
We recommend either flossing or use of a Waterpik after using an electric toothbrush.
Dental Clinic Bossley Park
Daily brushing goes along way towards optimal dental health. Visit the dentist twice per year for a check-up.
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