Traditionally speaking, we all brush our teeth in the night after we have had all our meals and drinks, but a group of dentists advocates that we should brush our teeth before eating. You must be wondering why we should brush our teeth before having a meal, and what the science behind it is. We all know the bacteria in our mouth causes plaque in our teeth, and most people focus on removing food particles from the teeth than plaque removal, when they brush after a meal. So, what is it that we focus on, plaque or the food particles? If you intend to remove the plaque, you should brush your teeth before having a meal.
If you intend to remove just the food particles, you can do that by flossing your teeth or using an oral irrigator after meals. Do you know when we take carbohydrates in our food, the plaque in our teeth causes fermentation and acid production, this acid erodes the enamel, and makes our gums weak. Brushing your teeth after the acid has been produced is of less use. Even if you brush immediately after a meal, it won’t help, the plaque bacteria produces acid within seconds of taking in carbohydrates. The salivary PH is 7.0, and the bacteria makes it acidic after we eat, around 4.5, brushing your teeth during this acidic PH can cause more harm to your teeth than good.
If you have consumed any acidic beverage, such as orange juice or soda, lemon juice and grapefruits, you should wait for at least 30 minutes until you brush your teeth. Acidic beverages make the teeth enamel weak, brushing during this time can further weaken and erode the enamel. When you lose your teeth enamel, your teeth become paler and yellowish, and the teeth sensitivity increases. Therefore, you should keep consumption of sodas to a minimum. Not just enamel, dentin the part under the enamel can also become weaken due to this acidic PH and then abrasion due to brushing.
Dentists suggest that brushing teeth in the night before bed achieves nothing much, but erodes acid softened enamel and dentin. Sounds confusing right? We have always been told to brush teeth before sleeping, so probably, it is just a tradition or there is no science behind it. It therefore, makes more sense to brush your teeth right after coming from work, before having any meals, this will help in removing plaque from the teeth, and thus less acid will be produced when we ingest food. Specifically, after consuming sugary foods and acidic beverages, it is not wise to brush already weak enamel and dentin.
Healthy saliva normalizes the acidic PH in about 30 minutes, chewing a Xylitol gum can also help in bringing mouth PH back to a normal, 7.0. So, should we not brush at all at night? Yes, we should, but at least 1 hour after eating dinner. Brushing your teeth first thing in the morning is the best practice; it will remove the bacteria that have been multiplying over night. So, would you brush before eating a meal? If you think it will alter the taste of your food, find toothpaste that doesn’t have sodium lauryl sulfate in it. In addition, you should use a pea-sized amount of toothpaste and a less abrasive brush, and always brush your teeth gently.
