Even though dentists might not necessarily agree on the “best brand” of toothbrush for you, or the “best brand toothpaste” that you should use, they will unanimously agree on one thing: you must brush your teeth for a minimum of 2 minutes, twice a day. Two minutes a day doesn’t seem too bad, does it?
At the CDA convention, my coworker and I were given two Arm & Hammer Spinbrush GloBrushes (and by given, I really mean that we begged) to take home and try out. We didn’t know what they were, just that they were free electric toothbrushes that lit up. And no, we didn’t mind that they were clearly marketed towards children.
Fast forward a few months later, I dug out this toothbrush and decided to give it a try to see how this differed from my regular toothbrush. I put on my Crest 3D Vivid White toothpaste and got to brushing, and saw that the toothbrush changed colors from green to red to green to red. A quick Google search brought me to a video that shows GloBrush changes colors every 30 seconds to indicate it’s time to switch quadrants. We think this is a pretty neat idea to encourage a thorough 2 minute brushing.
After brushing with the GloBrush, I realized that two minutes is actually much longer than I originally thought. In general, I have pretty healthy teeth (I brush and floss) but I did have two cavities a year ago. Perhaps it was because I wasn’t brushing for long enough.
Overall, I think toothbrushes with timers are an excellent reminder to those of us who aren’t sure if we do brush the required two minutes. I should warn you, your husband may make fun of you if he sees you around the bathroom sink with a toothbrush that glows! Sonicare & Oral-B sell rechargeable electric toothbrushes that also come with a 2-minute timer that I recommend for those who want more adult-like toothbrushes. It’s a fabulous little reminder that two minutes each time a day is going to help your overall oral health.
At your next semi-annual checkup, brushing for two minutes, twice a day and flossing will surely impress your dentist! Keep smiling.