I Was Brushing Six Times a Day. Then I Found This Silver-Infused Toothbrush.
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“It feels like my teeth are wearingsweaters” is a thing I’ve been saying to people for ages. A few years ago, myteethbecame so sensitive to refined sugar that after just one bite of an almond croissant they’d don what felt like Shetland-wool turtlenecks. It sounds cute, but the sensation of your teeth being swaddled in a thick outer layer is gross — especially when that outer layer is actually gunk, and when it happens multiple times a day. In an attempt to remedy this, I bought the most ruggedtoothbrushesI could find (Colgate’s “Extra Clean Full Head FIRM” brushes, which I always thought sounded vaguely pornographic, thus heightening the dirtiness I felt about my whole oral situation). They kept that sweater feeling at bay, but I needed to use them three times a day. When I finally told my dentist about my predicament and chosen solution, he broke some bad news. “You’re scrubbing off yourenamelwith abrasive brushing, which is why your teeth are becoming more sensitive,” he said. “And your gums are receding.”
He put me on a strictsoft-bristle-brushregimen that, while better for my enamel, increased my brushing to an average of six times a day (in addition toflossingat least twice). Whenever I indulged in a co-worker’s birthday cupcakes, I’d scurry off to the bathroom moments later,toothbrushin tow; if someone suggested dessert at dinner, I’d pray the restaurant’s bathroom had especially sturdy paper towels that I could fashion into a makeshiftfinger brush. But a few months ago, when a pack of soft-bristle brushes arrived at my doorstep, compliments of my boyfriend’s dad, Tom, I discovered one that actually helped reduce my six-times-a-day habit. Like me, Tom had recently had the soft-brush conversation with his dentist, and he found himself underwhelmed with the options. Then, on a visit toEarth Fare(a crunchy Asheville-based health-food store near his home in Charlotte),he saw these brushes, which he said reminded him of little hairbrushes with bristles made out of horsehair that he had as a kid. The first time he used the toothbrush, he told me, it felt amazing: “It was soft on my gums, but the bristles wrapped around my teeth.”
My first time brushing with one of Doctor Plotka’s Mouthwatchers (whosewebsitenotes their namesake creator’s 40 years of dental work in the Boston area) was more or less exactly as Tom described. The toothbrush’s “two-tiered revolutionary flossing bristles” — a fancy way of saying some bristles are longer than others—really did envelop my teeth. And although I wouldn’t suggest using this toothbrush as a substitute fordaily flossing, I think a big reason it helps my teeth stay sweater-less for longer is because those bristles whisk away the early formations of plaque in deep crevices that a regular toothbrush can’t reach, and from surfaces thatfloss wouldn’t reacheither (unless you’re doing a heavy-duty, reach-every-angle floss job).
The toothbrush’s superior cleaning ability, according to the brand, is also partly thanks to its “proprietary silver bristle technology,” whichpurportedly eliminates 99.9 percent of bacteriathat gather on the brush in a six-hour period. For my particular issue, this benefit is likely secondary, though it makes sense that scrubbing a dirty mouth with a dirty toothbrush might not clean it as well, since you’re basically swapping bacteria back and forth andrinsing. Whether it’s the longer bristles, the silver bristles, or both, the most important thing is that since I started using the Mouthwatchers, I’m back to brushing just twice a day — except for when I get particularly into a bag ofcandy(then it’s more like three). Still, I’m very happy to have my teethsweaters in storagefor the foreseeable future.
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