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Bleeding gums are NOT a good thing. Bleeding gums may be a sign of inflammation, gingivitis, which ultimately could lead to loss of teeth if untreated. Always

by mstade 9y ago

Bleeding gums are NOT a good thing. Bleeding gums may be a sign of inflammation, gingivitis, which ultimately could lead to loss of teeth if untreated. Always go with the softest brush you can find, to spare your gums, and also try not to use all that much tooth paste. You really don't need more than just a thin flat spread over the brush, or a ball about the size of a small pea. If your gums often bleed after brushing, you should go see a dentist. Even if it doesn't happen every day, please go. Source: my father is a dentist and I worked for him a number of years in the past, so picked up a few things.

l0b0 9y ago
He's not my dad, but that's pretty much exactly the opposite of what my dentist said. Yes, healthy gums don't bleed, but if they do that's usually a sign you're not brushing enough.
- mstade 9y ago
  I'm struggling to see how what you're saying is the opposite of what I'm saying – bleeding gums are bad, period. You can be brushing every day and still have bleeding gums, probably because your brush is too hard but possibly because of bacterial build up causing inflammation. A dentist will do a simple test to check your gums and can tell you straight away whether your gums are ok or not. My point being, bleeding gums are just not a good thing, ever. It doesn't have to mean you have gingivitis, you could just have nicked them with too hard a brush or whatever, but you should still look it up if it happens regularly when brushing or flossing. And obviously you should brush at least twice a day, and also floss daily (full disclosure: I'm a hypocrite on the flossing, but I try to be better) – if you eat / drink particularly acidic foodstuffs you'd do well in brushing after ingesting this as well. Brushing after every meal can be inconvenient or even difficult (I don't always bring a tooth brush to dinner) but some sugar free chewing gums are a decent enough substitute.
  - lostcolony 9y ago
    Bleeding gums are a bad symptom is what you're agreeing on. You're saying "That should never happen". He's saying "That's nice, but frequently when I switch to a new toothbrush it happens". Meaning that his old one was no longer cleaning his gums properly. Hence his original proposition that one needs to change toothbrushes more every few months.
Sleeep 9y ago
You misunderstood the post you are replying to. Gums bleeding with a new toothbrush means the old one wasn't cleaning well and the "good thing" is it's a good thing the switch was made as now the oral hygiene is improved.

by mstade 9y ago

l0b0 9y ago

He's not my dad, but that's pretty much exactly the opposite of what my dentist said. Yes, healthy gums don't bleed, but if they do that's usually a sign you're not brushing enough.

mstade 9y ago
I'm struggling to see how what you're saying is the opposite of what I'm saying – bleeding gums are bad, period. You can be brushing every day and still have bleeding gums, probably because your brush is too hard but possibly because of bacterial build up causing inflammation. A dentist will do a simple test to check your gums and can tell you straight away whether your gums are ok or not. My point being, bleeding gums are just not a good thing, ever. It doesn't have to mean you have gingivitis, you could just have nicked them with too hard a brush or whatever, but you should still look it up if it happens regularly when brushing or flossing. And obviously you should brush at least twice a day, and also floss daily (full disclosure: I'm a hypocrite on the flossing, but I try to be better) – if you eat / drink particularly acidic foodstuffs you'd do well in brushing after ingesting this as well. Brushing after every meal can be inconvenient or even difficult (I don't always bring a tooth brush to dinner) but some sugar free chewing gums are a decent enough substitute.
- lostcolony 9y ago
  Bleeding gums are a bad symptom is what you're agreeing on. You're saying "That should never happen". He's saying "That's nice, but frequently when I switch to a new toothbrush it happens". Meaning that his old one was no longer cleaning his gums properly. Hence his original proposition that one needs to change toothbrushes more every few months.

Sleeep 9y ago

You misunderstood the post you are replying to. Gums bleeding with a new toothbrush means the old one wasn't cleaning well and the "good thing" is it's a good thing the switch was made as now the oral hygiene is improved.