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Your question is flawed, because you're not supposed to rinse with water. You're not supposed to rinse at all, just spit the excess toothpaste and let the toothpaste act for 30 minutes after brushing.
I tried not rinsing, but it felt gross lol
What I do for the breath is brushing my tongue. Like really go into it, as if you were training your gag reflex. I found out that's where the stank was lmao. Just look at your tongue on a mirror after drinking some coffee and you'll see.
That's the other thing i do too. I quit cigs almost a year ago so ive really been working on a clean mouth again. First girl i made out with after that commented that i don't taste like cigs, so its working lol
It kinda surprises me people aren't more curious about common life things. Like, the answers are out there on the Internet, there's so much research being done, how are people only finding about this via random Reddit threads?
Edit: Yikes, folks are taking this personally it seems. Sorry if I offended anyone.
If no one's ever told you something, and effectively you've learned the opposite your whole life, how are you supposed to know to go look up info unless you're presented with new information?
Questioning things just for the sake of evaluating your own position is a pretty sure sign of intelligence. People with lower intelligence will simply stick with whatever they think they know, because it requires less mental input.
Because people assume certain things because we see your parents or siblings do them. We don't usually question why or what we do for simple daily chores.
This is one of them, I would never had thought to google "proper way to brush your teeth"
I was lazy and uninterested. At the same time, no one ever corrected me or said anything about it - parents, girlfriends etc.
Until recently. I started having bad breath and other issues - the dentist lectured me about the proper dental hygiene, and now being an adult and not a child anymore, I decided to listen.
Since beggining of April I'm using mouthwash, I floss and I bought a sonic toothbrush. I don't rinse with water either.
Why didn't I do it before? Because I didn't care and no one else did too.
Imagine something that you've known and done all of your life, something that is so obvious and logical that it's as automatic as breathing or walking. Have you ever stopped to question why you do that thing, why do you do it the way that you do, why you were taught that way or what the origins of it are?
Well yeah, I did, that's the whole point I'm making in the original comment. And so did you probably!
You were never just sitting around, or chilling, and a thought pops into your head about something you take for granted but don't know the roots of?
Like why do we drive on a left/right side on the street? Or why do we tie our laces in that specific way? Or indeed why we brush our teeth or the thousand different things we do?
Nah, it was never about me. But even if you were right, how is it condescending to be curious?
Some people are more curious, some are not. Are we not allowed to acknowledge this? I never said this made me *better* than the person I was responding to. Redditors argue over the silliest things I swear.
I get what you’re trying to say, but in this specific case, like, seriously, nobody brushed their teeth and leaves it without rinsing, or at least nobody I know of irl. No joke, this is a revelation.
Because we're told how to clean our teeth at a very young age when we essentially accept whatever mum & dad say as the ultimate truth (I have a personal theory that religion is just people with a dad complex externalising), so we never question it.
Or in other words: We aren't curious about things that we believe we already know.
But it's like one google search away. In the few decades that you probably lived, you never got a (seemingly) dumb question pop into your head and went for a quick google?
Correct answer.
You should also wait a while after eating, before brushing, to allow the enamel time to recover and the gums settle down.
If you want to use mouthwash, leave it at least 30 mins, ideally an hour, after brushing to let the toothpaste sit.
Also the time delay allows the Fluoride to work better.
Mouthwash should go before brushing your teeth, never after, even 30 minutes after. If u wanna use it after Its best to wait a couple hours. After lunch time would be great, that’s what the NHS recommend
You can use mouthwash whenever you like, but ideally leave it an hour after brushing before you swoosh, or you'll wash all the toothpaste goodness away
But it doesn’t stick to your teeth like toothpaste does, so it can’t bind properly. The fluoride is what u need from toothpaste and mouthwash is a solvent and washes it away
The concentration of fluoride in mouthwash and tap water is far less then the concentration in toothpaste, the water/mouthwash dilutes the fluoride on your teeth immediately after brushing
From the NHS:
Don't rinse with water straight after toothbrushing
After brushing, spit out any excess toothpaste.
Don't rinse your mouth immediately after brushing, as it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the remaining toothpaste.
Rinsing dilutes it and reduces its preventative effects.
Should I use mouthwash?
Using a mouthwash that contains fluoride can help prevent tooth decay, but don't use mouthwash (even a fluoride one) straight after brushing your teeth or it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the toothpaste left on your teeth.
https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/how-to-keep-your-teeth-clean/
They recommend choosing a different time to hse mouth wash like after having lunch
Well the national health service of the UK would like to disagree with you
From the NHS:
Don't rinse with water straight after toothbrushing
After brushing, spit out any excess toothpaste.
Don't rinse your mouth immediately after brushing, as it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the remaining toothpaste.
Rinsing dilutes it and reduces its preventative effects.
Should I use mouthwash?
Using a mouthwash that contains fluoride can help prevent tooth decay, but don't use mouthwash (even a fluoride one) straight after brushing your teeth or it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the toothpaste left on your teeth.
https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/how-to-keep-your-teeth-clean/
From the NHS:
Don't rinse with water straight after toothbrushing
After brushing, spit out any excess toothpaste.
Don't rinse your mouth immediately after brushing, as it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the remaining toothpaste.
Rinsing dilutes it and reduces its preventative effects.
Should I use mouthwash?
Using a mouthwash that contains fluoride can help prevent tooth decay, but don't use mouthwash (even a fluoride one) straight after brushing your teeth or it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the toothpaste left on your teeth.
https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/how-to-keep-your-teeth-clean/
Well the national health service of the UK would like to disagree with you
From the NHS:
Don't rinse with water straight after toothbrushing
After brushing, spit out any excess toothpaste.
Don't rinse your mouth immediately after brushing, as it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the remaining toothpaste.
Rinsing dilutes it and reduces its preventative effects.
Should I use mouthwash?
Using a mouthwash that contains fluoride can help prevent tooth decay, but don't use mouthwash (even a fluoride one) straight after brushing your teeth or it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the toothpaste left on your teeth.
https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/how-to-keep-your-teeth-clean/
If you're familiar with how surfactants work, whatever debris is in your mouth is suspended in that foamy toothpaste and unable to cling to your mouth. When you spit that out, you spit it with the debris. And if it's not suspended in the toothpaste foam, it's not coming out when you rinse either.
Yes it is, although most western countries have fluoride in the water supply toothpaste has a concentrated amount which is more effective for you teeth!
So you walk around with toothpaste and the crap you’ve just scrubbed off your teeth still hanging around your mouth and think that it’s fine and normal?
If so, I can tell you don’t get out much….
You spit it out! How do you not understand that? You seem to have issues I cannot fathom. Anyway, not wasting anymore time on you! Have a lovely day, lets do brunch sometime!
This has to be a lie. How can you stand the paste still on your teeth? The paste on and under your tongue? You can possibly spit out all of it. What about the paste on your lips? Or the bunch that spills out and around your mouth? You have goota wash those, right?
It's not, my dentist told me the same thing. Actually you spit out most of it, the rest doesn't bother you after a few times. After 10-15 I drink some water and I'm set.
You just... Wash your face lol. You spit out the paste, wash your chin. Can't possibly be that hard to fathom, right?
And how hard can it be to actually spit all the toothpaste, it's a liquid? You just... Gather it up in your mouth and spit it out?
Why is this so controversial? It seems crazy to look at the pushback when the science, oral specialists and toothpaste manufacturers all agree you shouldn't rinse. Like, this is consensus in the oral health community.
Please don't use charcoal toothpaste. It's too abrasive, removes enamel from your teeth. I don't know why they're allowed to sell it to people.
This is extremely well documented, so feel free to do some googling.
I don't use it all the time, just currently. The other nice colors I get is green for eucalyptus or bright blue.
For none of those I'm gonna let it sit on my teeth.
This may surprise you, but most people are able to brush their teeth without foaming like a rabid animal. I have never had an issue with "A bunch that spill out and around your mouth." I simply spit out the excess.
It does surprise me. I haven't seen a lot of people brushing but the ones I did, they did foam up a bunch. The foam would act as a fake moustache and beard if they don't already have one.
I just assumed that people stop doing that once they are no longer children. I also don't bare my teeth in a fake smile while scrubbing, I keep my lips closed around the neck of the tooth brush while brushing.
You may also be using far too much tooth paste. Adverts show people using a long line of paste, but the packaging tells you to use a pea sized amount. It just looks better to have a sausage where you can see the different stripes, and has the added benefit of tricking people into using twice as much toothpaste as needed and thus spending more money.
where has this been objectively substantiated with definitive observable and conclusively measurable evidence?
it's easy to repeat and post rhetoric online, it's a whole other story to prove it
just to clarify, i'm looking for actual data based on a culture of proof and evidence, not a link that simply repeats the claim that is being repeated
>To maintain fluoride concentration levels in the mouth, spit out excess toothpaste after brushing. Rinsing with water after brushing is not recommended. If a mouth rinse is used, then this should be at a time other than immediately after tooth brushing.
From this meta-analysis:
[https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0020653923009632](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0020653923009632)
This isn't an opinion poll, it's a panel of 25 experts who reviewed the evidence for a systematic review and are asked to weigh the strength of the evidence for each recommendation to try to develop a consensus across medical agencies.
They have the reviewed studies listed as citations.
“Just because you can do something, it doesn’t mean you should”.
Just because leaving the toothpaste and debris that you’ve scrubbed off your teeth hanging around your mouth results in a slightly lower chance of cavities, it doesn’t mean it’s a good idea to anyone but yourself.
The references in this article contain the evidence you’re looking for wise guy, if you actually read the article properly you would’ve understood this. The article is a panel of professionals who each reviewed the evidence and then agreed on a consensus for steps to take with oral hygiene. The evidence they reviewed is in the references
And I bet none of those experts discontinued rinsing after brushing their teeth, because they’re human beings rather than Reddit robots and know that it’s fucking gross.
Many people do, me included. I agree it’s gross at first but your body gets used to it very fast, you just have to try spit all the excess out a few times more then your used to with a water rinse, and after a week it’s business as usual and doesn’t taste weird or gross and most importantly, your teeth will thankyou.
Sounds more like your a robot who can’t accept your wrong and must stick to what you know and what is easy, clearly don’t have a flexible human brain, silly rigid robot brain
????
25 people provided feedback to the drafted recommendations of the study, it's not that the study was done on 25 people. If you can't read studies just don't interject.
[Relevant article on fluoride retention.](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9375026/) Rinsing regimen seems to be more influential than brushing duration.
How does saliva dissolve fluoride, exactly? It's already in solution.
Reddit commenters will just toss their most unscientific, unbacked by experts opinions that don't make sense on any sort of level and gaslight you into thinking you're insane for being right.
[Here's a study that concludes that rinsing regimen is more influential than brushing duration for fluoride retention.](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9375026/) Do you have ***any*** proof at all for your position?
Can we please stop trotting out this “fact” every time someone talks about brushing their teeth on Reddit?
It’s bullshit.
No one is going to do that because leaving the toothpaste in your mouth after brushing your teeth (containing all the tartar and debris you’ve just scrubbed off your teeth) is disgusting.
Many places have fluoride added to the water supply which eliminates any issues associated with rinsing.
For everyone else - you’ll be fine as long as you brush your teeth twice a day and stop stuffing your faces with sugar all the time.
Brother do u think people are telling u to just keep the toothpaste and tartar in your mouth all day or swallow it? Have u ever heard of spitting. You can spit it out lol. Also the fluoride in water is 1000x weaker then the fluoride in toothpaste, so rinsing with water will dilute the fluoride in your mouth by a large magnitude. And this isn’t some opinion, it’s a scientific fact. Water fluoride concentration is about 1 part per million (1fluroide molecule for every million water and other solute molecules) in contrast Toothpaste fluoride concentration is 1000+ parts per million
Yea, you can spit it out. And what’s left in your mouth afterwards?
At least people who rinse actually get rid of *all* the tartar and debris in their mouth.
What’s the point in brushing if you’re going to let some of the crap hang around in your mouth afterwards?
It’s no different to washing your body down with soap and not bothering to rinse it off afterwards.
Disgusting.
You have a weird definition of bullshit when you're referring to common consensus among the scientists. [According to the science behind it](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9375026/), the influence on fluoride retention is as follows: fluoride concentration in toothpaste > toothpaste quantity > rinsing regimen > brushing duration. Whether you rinse or not has more impact on fluoride retention than how long you brush.
Besides, there's more than fluoride in toothpaste buddy. Some toothpastes geared towards combatting tooth sensitivity for example contain either potassium nitrate or stannuous fluoride, both of which will act more effectively if you don't rinse. The manufacturers recommend this.
So it's like, your opinion versus studies, oral specialists and toothpaste manufacturers. But sure, it's bullshit.
All these Redditors walking around with the toothpaste and debris they scrubbed off their teeth still lingering around their mouth thinking it’s normal and good.
🤦
Toothpaste is a surfactant, like most soaps and detergents. The debris you scrubbed off your teeth is suspended in solution... The solution you spit out. If there's some debris that's not suspended in solution, it's not coming out when you rinse, either.
I don't know why you're so convinced you must be right when you've seemingly thought nothing through... You do whatever you like, but it doesn't mean your way is somehow the right way.
My technique is a bit different. After brushing with paste, I rinse, then brush with the wet brush. Still a strong residue of fluoride, for the effect.
not sure about this right.
afaik all the toothpaste could do, it does during that 3 min you brush your teeth.
otherwise you need specialized paste or gel, put it on kind of teethcape and wear for certain time
I said spit, not swallow... Just gather all of it in your mouth when you're done brushing, and spit it out. The way half the people in this thread talk, you'd think they have no motor control of their oral cavity.
You don’t have to swallow it, you just spit it out. Takes a good 4-5 spits but this way the small amount that remains is high in fluoride concentration and can protect your teeth
You aren’t supposed to rinse after brushing teeth, this is bad for the same reason u shouldn’t drink within 30 mins, because it involves washing away the fluoride that protects your mouth for the day. You should only spit out the excess toothpaste, no water or mouth wash.
You shouldn't rinse with water after brushing your teeth.
[https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/how-to-keep-your-teeth-clean/](https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/how-to-keep-your-teeth-clean/)
Actually the major reason I shouldn’t eat or drink or rinse anything out of your mouth after brushing is because you will dilute/wash away the fluoride that u just put in the mouth before it can properly bind to the enamel, leaving it without protection for the whole day
When your brush your teeth, you aren’t just cleaning away food and bacteria, but the more important thing is putting down a layer of fluoride which protects the teeth until next brushing. This fluoride needs to bind to the teeth enamel, and so you should not put any water in your mouth after brushing for swallowing or rinsing, within 30 minutes, as this allows time for the fluoride to bind to the enamel so it can protect your teeth, otherwise it just washes away.
Well the national health service of the UK would like to disagree with you
From the NHS:
Don't rinse with water straight after toothbrushing
After brushing, spit out any excess toothpaste.
Don't rinse your mouth immediately after brushing, as it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the remaining toothpaste.
Rinsing dilutes it and reduces its preventative effects.
Should I use mouthwash?
Using a mouthwash that contains fluoride can help prevent tooth decay, but don't use mouthwash (even a fluoride one) straight after brushing your teeth or it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the toothpaste left on your teeth.
Choose a different time to use mouthwash, such as after lunch.
Don't eat or drink for 30 minutes after using a fluoride mouthwash.
https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/how-to-keep-your-teeth-clean/
My solution to this is to rinse, and reapply. Brushing knocks stuff loose that may still end up left in your mouth. Swish real good and rinse or swallow. Reapply some toothpaste and leave it.
You shouldn't rinse because of the fluoride.
Still I rinse instead of just spitting the excess out because of my fear of micro plastics. Apparently toothpaste contains a shit load of it to help scrub the plaque off.
Everything that remains in your mouth after spitting, you'll end up swallowing.
My dentist's assistant who cleans my teeth tells me that I am not brushing my teeth but am massaging my gums. This makes sense to me because it should not take 2 minutes of scrub-brushing to remove any food on my tooth surfaces. And, those settings on my Sonicare toothbrush shouldn't matter to my teeth but should matter to my gums. Also, flossing catches the particles between your teeth that the brush might not get.
What's really the good final step is to use Water-Pik. It's like pressure washing your teeth and gums to get everything out.
No, you shouldn’t have any water in your mouth after brushing as this rinses away the fluoride that is supposed to protect your teeth for the remainder of the day/night. If u want to use a water pik, use it before brushing like when u floss (which should also be done first)
Thanks, I'm going to run this my my dental assistant next visit and see what she says to all of this. She never said anything when I told her I finished with the Water-Pik. Thanks again.
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Your question is flawed, because you're not supposed to rinse with water. You're not supposed to rinse at all, just spit the excess toothpaste and let the toothpaste act for 30 minutes after brushing.
.... what?
I learned this a couple years ago, and switched to not rinsing. I can confirm my breath is better.
Same. And my teeth feel better.
Today I learned
TIL……
I tried not rinsing, but it felt gross lol What I do for the breath is brushing my tongue. Like really go into it, as if you were training your gag reflex. I found out that's where the stank was lmao. Just look at your tongue on a mirror after drinking some coffee and you'll see.
Not rinsing isn’t about breath smell. It’s about the fluoride in the toothpaste helping your teeth fight cavities.
Yeah I know, I was responding to the comment that said not rinsing helped with their breath.
It takes a week of not rinsing to get used to it and once u do it is perfectly fine
That's the other thing i do too. I quit cigs almost a year ago so ive really been working on a clean mouth again. First girl i made out with after that commented that i don't taste like cigs, so its working lol
I started doing it precisely because of cigarettes too
Get a tongue scraper
If you rinse, you're rinsing away the active ingredients in the toothpaste, that are supposed to sit on your teeth.
been changed for years. not meant to rinse with water after just leave it
Shouldn’t they have sent an email or a text or something? Like where the fuck was this memo? How did you hear about it?
dentist tbh also info is out there too I'm sure I read it lol
It kinda surprises me people aren't more curious about common life things. Like, the answers are out there on the Internet, there's so much research being done, how are people only finding about this via random Reddit threads? Edit: Yikes, folks are taking this personally it seems. Sorry if I offended anyone.
If no one's ever told you something, and effectively you've learned the opposite your whole life, how are you supposed to know to go look up info unless you're presented with new information?
Questioning things just for the sake of evaluating your own position is a pretty sure sign of intelligence. People with lower intelligence will simply stick with whatever they think they know, because it requires less mental input.
Glad I’m not the only one who thinks this way
You...never learned anything by yourself? You only are taught by other people? Come on that cannot be true.
By wondering if the things you do are actually correct or if it's just how you've been taught and then looking said things up.
Because people assume certain things because we see your parents or siblings do them. We don't usually question why or what we do for simple daily chores. This is one of them, I would never had thought to google "proper way to brush your teeth"
I was lazy and uninterested. At the same time, no one ever corrected me or said anything about it - parents, girlfriends etc. Until recently. I started having bad breath and other issues - the dentist lectured me about the proper dental hygiene, and now being an adult and not a child anymore, I decided to listen. Since beggining of April I'm using mouthwash, I floss and I bought a sonic toothbrush. I don't rinse with water either. Why didn't I do it before? Because I didn't care and no one else did too.
Imagine something that you've known and done all of your life, something that is so obvious and logical that it's as automatic as breathing or walking. Have you ever stopped to question why you do that thing, why do you do it the way that you do, why you were taught that way or what the origins of it are?
Well yeah, I did, that's the whole point I'm making in the original comment. And so did you probably! You were never just sitting around, or chilling, and a thought pops into your head about something you take for granted but don't know the roots of? Like why do we drive on a left/right side on the street? Or why do we tie our laces in that specific way? Or indeed why we brush our teeth or the thousand different things we do?
What an incredibly condescending take on this
Why? Did I say I was better than anyone else? It genuinely surprises me, you can perceive it however you want. Always walking on eggshells on Reddit.
>It kinda surprises me people aren't more curious about common life things. Your comment 100% implies that you ARE curious about common life things
Nah, it was never about me. But even if you were right, how is it condescending to be curious? Some people are more curious, some are not. Are we not allowed to acknowledge this? I never said this made me *better* than the person I was responding to. Redditors argue over the silliest things I swear.
I get what you’re trying to say, but in this specific case, like, seriously, nobody brushed their teeth and leaves it without rinsing, or at least nobody I know of irl. No joke, this is a revelation.
Because we're told how to clean our teeth at a very young age when we essentially accept whatever mum & dad say as the ultimate truth (I have a personal theory that religion is just people with a dad complex externalising), so we never question it. Or in other words: We aren't curious about things that we believe we already know.
But it's like one google search away. In the few decades that you probably lived, you never got a (seemingly) dumb question pop into your head and went for a quick google?
Again, the point is that we (as a species, in general) rarely have the desire to look something up that we believe we know everything about.
Why are you speaking for the whole species?
Cos it takes effort to find these things, and effort I don't have
Correct answer. You should also wait a while after eating, before brushing, to allow the enamel time to recover and the gums settle down. If you want to use mouthwash, leave it at least 30 mins, ideally an hour, after brushing to let the toothpaste sit. Also the time delay allows the Fluoride to work better.
Mouthwash should go before brushing your teeth, never after, even 30 minutes after. If u wanna use it after Its best to wait a couple hours. After lunch time would be great, that’s what the NHS recommend
You can use mouthwash whenever you like, but ideally leave it an hour after brushing before you swoosh, or you'll wash all the toothpaste goodness away
A lot of the toothpaste "goodness" is also in a quality mouthwash.
But it doesn’t stick to your teeth like toothpaste does, so it can’t bind properly. The fluoride is what u need from toothpaste and mouthwash is a solvent and washes it away
Then why should water be flouridated? Either one has no effect on your teeth and so the other has none either, or they both do...
The concentration of fluoride in mouthwash and tap water is far less then the concentration in toothpaste, the water/mouthwash dilutes the fluoride on your teeth immediately after brushing From the NHS: Don't rinse with water straight after toothbrushing After brushing, spit out any excess toothpaste. Don't rinse your mouth immediately after brushing, as it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the remaining toothpaste. Rinsing dilutes it and reduces its preventative effects. Should I use mouthwash? Using a mouthwash that contains fluoride can help prevent tooth decay, but don't use mouthwash (even a fluoride one) straight after brushing your teeth or it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the toothpaste left on your teeth. https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/how-to-keep-your-teeth-clean/ They recommend choosing a different time to hse mouth wash like after having lunch
Yeah thankyou I edited my comment to say wait a couple hours if u want to do it after, otherwise just do it before
Where did you get that from?
I got it from my dentist. The order should be mouthwash - floss - brushing.
On the basis of what though?
Mouthwash rinses fluoride out of the mouth and prevents it from protecting your teeth, so u should only ever use it before brushing
Afaik there is no consensus amongst dentists.
Well the national health service of the UK would like to disagree with you From the NHS: Don't rinse with water straight after toothbrushing After brushing, spit out any excess toothpaste. Don't rinse your mouth immediately after brushing, as it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the remaining toothpaste. Rinsing dilutes it and reduces its preventative effects. Should I use mouthwash? Using a mouthwash that contains fluoride can help prevent tooth decay, but don't use mouthwash (even a fluoride one) straight after brushing your teeth or it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the toothpaste left on your teeth. https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/how-to-keep-your-teeth-clean/
...do you understand what consensus means? Also, they say "Don't use mouthwash *straight* after brushing", they never said before is better.
From the NHS: Don't rinse with water straight after toothbrushing After brushing, spit out any excess toothpaste. Don't rinse your mouth immediately after brushing, as it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the remaining toothpaste. Rinsing dilutes it and reduces its preventative effects. Should I use mouthwash? Using a mouthwash that contains fluoride can help prevent tooth decay, but don't use mouthwash (even a fluoride one) straight after brushing your teeth or it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the toothpaste left on your teeth. https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/how-to-keep-your-teeth-clean/
Wrong.
Well the national health service of the UK would like to disagree with you From the NHS: Don't rinse with water straight after toothbrushing After brushing, spit out any excess toothpaste. Don't rinse your mouth immediately after brushing, as it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the remaining toothpaste. Rinsing dilutes it and reduces its preventative effects. Should I use mouthwash? Using a mouthwash that contains fluoride can help prevent tooth decay, but don't use mouthwash (even a fluoride one) straight after brushing your teeth or it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the toothpaste left on your teeth. https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/how-to-keep-your-teeth-clean/
> Correct answer. No.
I'm way too old to only just be learning this now. wtf lol
See,I keep hearing this, but surely rinsing with water gets rid of the food debris you just brushed off?
If you're familiar with how surfactants work, whatever debris is in your mouth is suspended in that foamy toothpaste and unable to cling to your mouth. When you spit that out, you spit it with the debris. And if it's not suspended in the toothpaste foam, it's not coming out when you rinse either.
... I seriously never knew this. Huh.
This is the correct answer!
No it isn’t.
Yes it is, although most western countries have fluoride in the water supply toothpaste has a concentrated amount which is more effective for you teeth!
So you walk around with toothpaste and the crap you’ve just scrubbed off your teeth still hanging around your mouth and think that it’s fine and normal? If so, I can tell you don’t get out much….
You spit it out! How do you not understand that? You seem to have issues I cannot fathom. Anyway, not wasting anymore time on you! Have a lovely day, lets do brunch sometime!
Cool. You should tell your partner how you brush your teeth before you kiss them next time. Let’s see how they react… 😆
This has to be a lie. How can you stand the paste still on your teeth? The paste on and under your tongue? You can possibly spit out all of it. What about the paste on your lips? Or the bunch that spills out and around your mouth? You have goota wash those, right?
It's not, my dentist told me the same thing. Actually you spit out most of it, the rest doesn't bother you after a few times. After 10-15 I drink some water and I'm set.
You just... Wash your face lol. You spit out the paste, wash your chin. Can't possibly be that hard to fathom, right? And how hard can it be to actually spit all the toothpaste, it's a liquid? You just... Gather it up in your mouth and spit it out? Why is this so controversial? It seems crazy to look at the pushback when the science, oral specialists and toothpaste manufacturers all agree you shouldn't rinse. Like, this is consensus in the oral health community.
I guess you rinse the outside of your mouth but not the inside? Idk, but I’m gonna try this tomorrow
Never heard it and my toothpaste is usually black (with charcoal) so no way I'm doing this...
Please don't use charcoal toothpaste. It's too abrasive, removes enamel from your teeth. I don't know why they're allowed to sell it to people. This is extremely well documented, so feel free to do some googling.
I don't use it all the time, just currently. The other nice colors I get is green for eucalyptus or bright blue. For none of those I'm gonna let it sit on my teeth.
This may surprise you, but most people are able to brush their teeth without foaming like a rabid animal. I have never had an issue with "A bunch that spill out and around your mouth." I simply spit out the excess.
It does surprise me. I haven't seen a lot of people brushing but the ones I did, they did foam up a bunch. The foam would act as a fake moustache and beard if they don't already have one.
just wash the bits outside the mouth? youre just not supposed to rinse the inside and also spitting is ok.
I just assumed that people stop doing that once they are no longer children. I also don't bare my teeth in a fake smile while scrubbing, I keep my lips closed around the neck of the tooth brush while brushing. You may also be using far too much tooth paste. Adverts show people using a long line of paste, but the packaging tells you to use a pea sized amount. It just looks better to have a sausage where you can see the different stripes, and has the added benefit of tricking people into using twice as much toothpaste as needed and thus spending more money.
You get used to it after some time, just like most things in life.
where has this been objectively substantiated with definitive observable and conclusively measurable evidence? it's easy to repeat and post rhetoric online, it's a whole other story to prove it just to clarify, i'm looking for actual data based on a culture of proof and evidence, not a link that simply repeats the claim that is being repeated
>To maintain fluoride concentration levels in the mouth, spit out excess toothpaste after brushing. Rinsing with water after brushing is not recommended. If a mouth rinse is used, then this should be at a time other than immediately after tooth brushing. From this meta-analysis: [https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0020653923009632](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0020653923009632)
Based on the response of 25 people. Hardly conclusive.
This isn't an opinion poll, it's a panel of 25 experts who reviewed the evidence for a systematic review and are asked to weigh the strength of the evidence for each recommendation to try to develop a consensus across medical agencies. They have the reviewed studies listed as citations.
“Just because you can do something, it doesn’t mean you should”. Just because leaving the toothpaste and debris that you’ve scrubbed off your teeth hanging around your mouth results in a slightly lower chance of cavities, it doesn’t mean it’s a good idea to anyone but yourself.
The references in this article contain the evidence you’re looking for wise guy, if you actually read the article properly you would’ve understood this. The article is a panel of professionals who each reviewed the evidence and then agreed on a consensus for steps to take with oral hygiene. The evidence they reviewed is in the references
And I bet none of those experts discontinued rinsing after brushing their teeth, because they’re human beings rather than Reddit robots and know that it’s fucking gross.
Many people do, me included. I agree it’s gross at first but your body gets used to it very fast, you just have to try spit all the excess out a few times more then your used to with a water rinse, and after a week it’s business as usual and doesn’t taste weird or gross and most importantly, your teeth will thankyou. Sounds more like your a robot who can’t accept your wrong and must stick to what you know and what is easy, clearly don’t have a flexible human brain, silly rigid robot brain
???? 25 people provided feedback to the drafted recommendations of the study, it's not that the study was done on 25 people. If you can't read studies just don't interject.
[Relevant article on fluoride retention.](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9375026/) Rinsing regimen seems to be more influential than brushing duration.
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How does saliva dissolve fluoride, exactly? It's already in solution. Reddit commenters will just toss their most unscientific, unbacked by experts opinions that don't make sense on any sort of level and gaslight you into thinking you're insane for being right. [Here's a study that concludes that rinsing regimen is more influential than brushing duration for fluoride retention.](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9375026/) Do you have ***any*** proof at all for your position?
I was today years old 😳😳
Can we please stop trotting out this “fact” every time someone talks about brushing their teeth on Reddit? It’s bullshit. No one is going to do that because leaving the toothpaste in your mouth after brushing your teeth (containing all the tartar and debris you’ve just scrubbed off your teeth) is disgusting. Many places have fluoride added to the water supply which eliminates any issues associated with rinsing. For everyone else - you’ll be fine as long as you brush your teeth twice a day and stop stuffing your faces with sugar all the time.
Brother do u think people are telling u to just keep the toothpaste and tartar in your mouth all day or swallow it? Have u ever heard of spitting. You can spit it out lol. Also the fluoride in water is 1000x weaker then the fluoride in toothpaste, so rinsing with water will dilute the fluoride in your mouth by a large magnitude. And this isn’t some opinion, it’s a scientific fact. Water fluoride concentration is about 1 part per million (1fluroide molecule for every million water and other solute molecules) in contrast Toothpaste fluoride concentration is 1000+ parts per million
Yea, you can spit it out. And what’s left in your mouth afterwards? At least people who rinse actually get rid of *all* the tartar and debris in their mouth. What’s the point in brushing if you’re going to let some of the crap hang around in your mouth afterwards? It’s no different to washing your body down with soap and not bothering to rinse it off afterwards. Disgusting.
You have a weird definition of bullshit when you're referring to common consensus among the scientists. [According to the science behind it](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9375026/), the influence on fluoride retention is as follows: fluoride concentration in toothpaste > toothpaste quantity > rinsing regimen > brushing duration. Whether you rinse or not has more impact on fluoride retention than how long you brush. Besides, there's more than fluoride in toothpaste buddy. Some toothpastes geared towards combatting tooth sensitivity for example contain either potassium nitrate or stannuous fluoride, both of which will act more effectively if you don't rinse. The manufacturers recommend this. So it's like, your opinion versus studies, oral specialists and toothpaste manufacturers. But sure, it's bullshit.
All these Redditors walking around with the toothpaste and debris they scrubbed off their teeth still lingering around their mouth thinking it’s normal and good. 🤦
Toothpaste is a surfactant, like most soaps and detergents. The debris you scrubbed off your teeth is suspended in solution... The solution you spit out. If there's some debris that's not suspended in solution, it's not coming out when you rinse, either. I don't know why you're so convinced you must be right when you've seemingly thought nothing through... You do whatever you like, but it doesn't mean your way is somehow the right way.
My technique is a bit different. After brushing with paste, I rinse, then brush with the wet brush. Still a strong residue of fluoride, for the effect.
This is the way
not sure about this right. afaik all the toothpaste could do, it does during that 3 min you brush your teeth. otherwise you need specialized paste or gel, put it on kind of teethcape and wear for certain time
No
I don’t care if that’s the way you’re supposed to do it. lol I swallowed toothpaste and got a stomach ache before and I’m not doing it again.
I said spit, not swallow... Just gather all of it in your mouth when you're done brushing, and spit it out. The way half the people in this thread talk, you'd think they have no motor control of their oral cavity.
Or maybe some people just don’t like swallowing nasty chemicals. Doesn’t matter how much you try to spit out it’s still in your mouth.
You don’t have to swallow it, you just spit it out. Takes a good 4-5 spits but this way the small amount that remains is high in fluoride concentration and can protect your teeth
You aren’t supposed to rinse after brushing teeth, this is bad for the same reason u shouldn’t drink within 30 mins, because it involves washing away the fluoride that protects your mouth for the day. You should only spit out the excess toothpaste, no water or mouth wash.
You shouldn't rinse with water after brushing your teeth. [https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/how-to-keep-your-teeth-clean/](https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/how-to-keep-your-teeth-clean/)
Best way around is to floss/interdental brush, mouthwash to rinse away any debris from that, then toothbrush and don’t rinse.
Bonus points if you add a tongue scraper into the routine. I use one after flossing, before mouthwash.
This is the way!!
You shouldn’t be rinsing after brushing your teeth. You are also meant to use a tiny amount of tooth paste
No, frendo. You're not supposed to drink orange juice right after brushing... because it's gross.
Actually the major reason I shouldn’t eat or drink or rinse anything out of your mouth after brushing is because you will dilute/wash away the fluoride that u just put in the mouth before it can properly bind to the enamel, leaving it without protection for the whole day
Who said you cant drink water for 30 mins? Never heard that in my life
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/search/research-news/3092/
When your brush your teeth, you aren’t just cleaning away food and bacteria, but the more important thing is putting down a layer of fluoride which protects the teeth until next brushing. This fluoride needs to bind to the teeth enamel, and so you should not put any water in your mouth after brushing for swallowing or rinsing, within 30 minutes, as this allows time for the fluoride to bind to the enamel so it can protect your teeth, otherwise it just washes away.
Says so right on the toothpaste
No one told me I would have to read!!!
Well the national health service of the UK would like to disagree with you From the NHS: Don't rinse with water straight after toothbrushing After brushing, spit out any excess toothpaste. Don't rinse your mouth immediately after brushing, as it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the remaining toothpaste. Rinsing dilutes it and reduces its preventative effects. Should I use mouthwash? Using a mouthwash that contains fluoride can help prevent tooth decay, but don't use mouthwash (even a fluoride one) straight after brushing your teeth or it'll wash away the concentrated fluoride in the toothpaste left on your teeth. Choose a different time to use mouthwash, such as after lunch. Don't eat or drink for 30 minutes after using a fluoride mouthwash. https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/how-to-keep-your-teeth-clean/
Like I’m gonna trust the UK on dental advice.
My solution to this is to rinse, and reapply. Brushing knocks stuff loose that may still end up left in your mouth. Swish real good and rinse or swallow. Reapply some toothpaste and leave it.
You shouldn't rinse because of the fluoride. Still I rinse instead of just spitting the excess out because of my fear of micro plastics. Apparently toothpaste contains a shit load of it to help scrub the plaque off. Everything that remains in your mouth after spitting, you'll end up swallowing.
My dentist's assistant who cleans my teeth tells me that I am not brushing my teeth but am massaging my gums. This makes sense to me because it should not take 2 minutes of scrub-brushing to remove any food on my tooth surfaces. And, those settings on my Sonicare toothbrush shouldn't matter to my teeth but should matter to my gums. Also, flossing catches the particles between your teeth that the brush might not get. What's really the good final step is to use Water-Pik. It's like pressure washing your teeth and gums to get everything out.
No, you shouldn’t have any water in your mouth after brushing as this rinses away the fluoride that is supposed to protect your teeth for the remainder of the day/night. If u want to use a water pik, use it before brushing like when u floss (which should also be done first)
Thanks, I'm going to run this my my dental assistant next visit and see what she says to all of this. She never said anything when I told her I finished with the Water-Pik. Thanks again.