Should I Bring A Toothbrush to Work/School?
A common question for working professionals and for students is whether or not they should bring a toothbrush and toothpaste with them. While many people do all of their oral care from the comfort of their own bathroom, many other people bring travel toothbrushes and toothpaste to work.
To answer question simply, there are benefits to brushing your teeth at work, and there are factors where it might be more important. But, the recommended minimum frequency for brushing your teeth is twice, which is often done once in the morning and once at night.
To answer this further, we will discuss the factors of how brushing works, when to brush your teeth, and some circumstances where it might be beneficial to bring a travel toothbrush to work.
Why Do We Need To Brush Our Teeth Daily?
The main cause of dental decay is bacteria growth. The food we eat helps that bacteria grow in our mouths. In places where food debris and sugar from beverages can stay in our mouths, that bacteria does significant damage. This is why some of the common areas for cavities are where the teeth meet the gum line and in the crevices between the teeth. One of the first steps in cavity development is the destruction of the enamel or the outermost layer of a tooth. The best way to protect your teeth on a daily basis is with brushing and flossing. Every dentist recommends that you these activities daily. Since we eat and drink on a daily basis, we need to remove the bacteria on a daily basis. This is also the reason why many people do their oral routine after meals.
But When Should We Brush Our Teeth?
There are other daily habits that can actually remove some of the bacteria in our mouths. Drinking beverages, especially water, can naturally remove some food particles from our teeth. Chewing sugar free gum can do that as well. While these habits aren’t as effective or as thorough as brushing and flossing it is important to mention. The reason is why, is because it shines a bit of a light on to the time period where we are most vulnerable of unchecked bacteria growth; nighttime. When we are sleeping bacteria can grow freely. That is why the two most important times to brush your teeth are before and after bed. In fact, morning breath is caused by the growth of bacteria in the mouth overnight. If you have ever woken up in the morning and notice that your mouth feels strange or there are buildups of plaque on your teeth it is because you just spent consecutive hours where your bacteria could grow uninterrupted. Brushing after you finish dinner/dessert and in the morning are the most effective ways to prevent decay caused at night.
Does Bringing A Toothbrush To Work Help?
Yes! There are many benefits to having a travel oral kit that you keep in your backpack or suitcase. While the gap of time between brushing your teeth in the morning and brushing your teeth at night isn’t that long, brushing your teeth at work or at school is still beneficial as a third brushing time. That said, you shouldn’t brush at lunch, consider it your second and final time for the day and skip brushing at night. But many people travel with a small dental care bag because it provides so many benefits. From an oral health stand point, a travel kit is great for mornings where your routine is upset and you have to brush at work because you didn’t have time in the morning. It is also great if you have to travel. If you leave straight from work to an airport, you will already have your oral care kit when you land.
Family Dental Services in Swampscott Massachusetts
If you live in the North Shore area, our dental office in Swampscott would be happy to help you with dental services. Brushing and flossing are great for daily protection against tooth decay, but nothing beats and exam and a cleaning from a professional team!