Are electric toothbrushes better? The smart choice for your oral care

When it comes to oral hygiene, choosing the right toothbrush can make a big difference. “Are electric toothbrushes better?” is the question that needs no answer! Electric toothbrushes have become increasingly popular in recent years, with many people claiming they are more effective in promoting good oral health. But are they really better?

We will take you through the question you might have about electric brushes and expand on the reasons why they are better. That’s not all. We will talk about the disadvantages of electric toothbrushes as well. So, stick around and find the answer!

Reasons why electric toothbrushes are better

Clearly, “are electric toothbrushes better” is not just a matter of preference. Dental professionals agree with these reasons that electric brushes are better, and most probably you will have a better brushing experience as well.

• Effectiveness
• User friendly
• Brushing made easy
• Bring fun to kids
• Tech-savvy brushing
• Boost braces care

We will go through each and every reason and expand on them so that you can understand better why electric toothbrushes are better.

Effectiveness

Electric toothbrushes provide improved cleaning of teeth!

Many studies have been done on how effectively electric brushes can remove plaque and tartar buildup from your tooth surfaces. This is mostly due to the power provided by electricity and brush heads that can move rapidly unlike manual brushing. Reduction in plaque plays an important role in your oral hygiene and gingival health.

Speaking of cleaning brings us to the next reason.

User-friendly

It cleans hard-to-reach places on teeth!

Your oral cavity has many nooks and crannies and keeping them clean is important to your dental health. This is where manual brushes might come a bit short. The design of electric toothbrush heads are longer and give you more reach. Since an electric toothbrush can brush by itself by guiding it to those hard-to-reach places in your mouth, you can clean your teeth handily.

Brushing made easy

Eased brushing for people with limited mobility!

As mentioned time after time, oral hygiene is an important thing, and neglecting it can have irreversible consequences such as tooth loss and tooth decay. People with limited mobility or dexterity issues whether young or old can benefit from using a smart toothbrush. Since there is not much need for movement and no need to put pressure they can brush their teeth effortlessly.

Bring fun to kids

Electric toothbrushes can be fun for kids!

Most times getting children to brush their teeth can be quite challenging. Children might find the whole brushing experience boring or too long when it is done with manual brushes. But with an electric one there is not much need for supervision and it gets the job done. Also using an electric toothbrush could help the children build better brushing habits.

Tech-savvy brushing

Electric toothbrushes have technological features!

In the day and age of technology, it is only fair for your toothbrushes to be as technologically advanced as well. So, what are these technological features?

• Built-in timer: How long you brush your teeth is an important part of your oral health routine. Each brushing session should take about 2 minutes. So with a built-in timer, you can easily track the time of your brushing session.
• Pressure sensor: You know aggressive brushing is not good for your teeth and gum health. Some smart toothbrushes come with a pressure indicator to help you ease down on your teeth and brush gently.
• Electric toothbrush apps: Nowadays everything has an app, so why not your smart toothbrush? With the app, you can improve your brushing habits. The app will check your brushing process and give you feedback if you have missed cleaning any parts of your teeth, even your tongue. It can also keep a record of other common issues such as gum disease.
• Brush head position detection: In some more recent models of electronic toothbrushes, there is this special feature called brush head position detection. There are special sensors that help you guide your brush head to clean your teeth better and thoroughly. This feature can be synced with a smartphone app to enhance the brushing experience.

Electric toothbrushes boost braces care

After reading about all these benefits you might be thinking “are electric toothbrushes better for braces?” and the answer is yes!

Dental professionals mostly recommend using an electric toothbrush with braces. Since with braces, a manual toothbrush might not be the best fit for cleaning all the surfaces. When you have braces there are more spaces for food to get stuck in. So it is not just the chewing surfaces that you should clean. With powered toothbrushes, the brushing process will be better and more thorough.

If you have continued reading until here you might be thinking ok well it can’t be all good! That brings us to the negatives then.

Are there any disadvantages of electric toothbrushes?

In short yes, nothing is perfect! But the advantages definitely outshine the disadvantages that most dental experts are recommending using an electric toothbrush rather than a manual toothbrush. But nevertheless, let’s see what some of the disadvantages of electric toothbrushes are.

Price

Whether you are looking to get a rechargeable version or a battery-operated version, electric toothbrushes come at a higher price point. And that is just the beginning. You will need replacement brush heads and replacement batteries as well. The cost of replacement brush heads usually increases based on the model. So if you are on a tight budget it could be a downside.

Excessive pressure on gums

Wait! What? So an electric toothbrush is bad for your gum health? Not exactly, but here is how it can hurt your gum and cause gum recession. Over-scrubbing with excessive pressure can wear away tooth enamel and result in gum recession over time. It’s not the toothbrush itself, but how you use it.

Other than these so far dental experts have not found any other disadvantages but if you are planning to become an electric toothbrush user, it is best to consider these aspects as well for your gum care.