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OT: Why is 2 minutes still the recommended time to brush your teeth for (by the ADA)? Lets say the baseline is 100 vibrations or brushes (or swipes) per minute

OT: Why is 2 minutes still the recommended time to brush your teeth for (by the ADA)? Lets say the baseline is 100 vibrations or brushes (or swipes) per minute for a manual toothbrush. If an electric toothbrush vibrates 8000 times per minute (or any other measurable metric), then shouldn't the amount of time you need to brush for be lowered? Seems like the whole brush your teeth for 2 minutes was just a very general guideline but was never updated to be very scientific since the introduction of electric toothbrushes. Also, can we have electric toothbrushes advertise vibrations per minute? or some other metric like that? It seems like over the years they get weaker and weaker.

ericmcer 1y ago
I always thought the 2 mins was to make sure fluoridated toothpaste sits on your teeth for long enough to work. Number of brushes is only one angle of why you brush.
elif 1y ago
It still takes 2 minutes to clean your teeth, even with the highest end ultrasonic. That is because you have to go tooth by tooth getting all angles. Yes, it is impossible to clean your teeth as well with a normal brush in the same 2 minutes, but that doesn't mean that under 2 minutes of ultrasonic will suffice. Like just because an elevator moves twice as fast doesn't mean you can go from 2 elevators to 1 and still service all floors with the same standard.
vel0city 1y ago
As others have already mentioned, it's more about general guidance ensuring you're actually getting all your teeth. Plus, you want to have the flouride toothpaste actually on your teeth for some period of time. If you want to see if you're actually brushing enough, change up your strategy and use plaque disclosing tablets to see if you're still adequately hitting everything. > It seems like over the years they get weaker and weaker Probably related to people brushing their teeth too hard with these more powerful toothbrushes.

ericmcer 1y ago

I always thought the 2 mins was to make sure fluoridated toothpaste sits on your teeth for long enough to work. Number of brushes is only one angle of why you brush.

elif 1y ago

It still takes 2 minutes to clean your teeth, even with the highest end ultrasonic. That is because you have to go tooth by tooth getting all angles. Yes, it is impossible to clean your teeth as well with a normal brush in the same 2 minutes, but that doesn't mean that under 2 minutes of ultrasonic will suffice. Like just because an elevator moves twice as fast doesn't mean you can go from 2 elevators to 1 and still service all floors with the same standard.

vel0city 1y ago

As others have already mentioned, it's more about general guidance ensuring you're actually getting all your teeth. Plus, you want to have the flouride toothpaste actually on your teeth for some period of time. If you want to see if you're actually brushing enough, change up your strategy and use plaque disclosing tablets to see if you're still adequately hitting everything. > It seems like over the years they get weaker and weaker Probably related to people brushing their teeth too hard with these more powerful toothbrushes.