Give Your Teeth a Holiday Gift by Brushing for Two Minutes

Most dentists agree that in order to brush your teeth properly, you need to brush your teeth for at least two minutes.

The best use of that time can be spent by dividing the time evenly between your top teeth and your bottom teeth.

To help children brush their teeth for two minutes, you can set a timer, play a song or purchase a fancy toothbrush with a built in timer.

It is also important to note that one side of your mouth generally has more plaque and tartar build up than the other.

Why is this usually the case? We tend to prefer to chew our food on one side of our mouth more than the other. 

Yes, we even have a dominant side in our mouths.

So, the question is raised, does the side on which we chew most of our food tend to have more plaque and tartar build up or less?

Many people think the answer is more, but findings indicate that the dominant side of the mouth tends to have less plaque and tartar due to the increased saliva production.

Therefore, you should make sure to spend a little extra time brushing the teeth on your non-dominant side. Just because you aren’t using those teeth to chew your food, doesn’t mean bacteria isn’t taking refuge there.

We also often focus our brushing on the front sides of our teeth and neglect the back facing sides. This allows food, sugars, bacteria and acid to stay hidden and nestled snuggly against those surfaces. Just because you can’t see the back of each tooth, doesn’t mean it can’t become victim to hidden villains.

Lastly, you must remember to spend a small amount of time brushing your tongue.

Your tongue is a haven for bacteria and is one of the main contributors to bad breath.

Between the taste buds and the other many crevices on your tongue, bacteria multiply quickly and form a film on top of your tongue. It is literally a breeding ground for bacteria throughout the day.

Quickly brushing your entire tongue, will rid it of the bacteria and film and that’s sticky feeling in your mouth. Although you usually hear about the importance of brushing and flossing your teeth to avoid cavities, failing to brush your tongue can also lead to cavities, gum disease and a host of other problems.

So, by incorporating a two minute mandatory brushing time, focusing on both sides of your mouth, all sides of your teeth and your tongue, you can give your mouth the gift that keeps on giving this holiday season.