Electric Toothbrush vs a Manual Toothbrush

When you go for a teeth cleaning at the dentist’s office you usually leave with a toothbrush and a tube of toothpaste and your told see you in six months. An electric toothbrush can cost from $35.00 to $300.00 with Bluetooth connectivity. A manual toothbrush sells for a unit price of around.75 cents.

The electric toothbrush market is worth 2,829.5 million dollars in 2021 and forecasted to surpass 3,518.6 million dollars by 2028.

Is an electric toothbrush worth the money?

Do you brush your teeth better with the electric toothbrush or a manual toothbrush?

Brushing your teeth is all about removing plaque from the cervix of your teeth (that small space between enamel and gum). Plaque is building up a colony of bacteria that loosely adheres to the tooth’s cervix and takes 12 hours to colonize.  This 12-hour period is why it is suggested you brush your teeth twice per day. If you allow the plaque to continually build and adhere it hardens and becomes what is known as calculus which you can’t remove by brushing. It is the calculus that your hygienist or dentist is going after when you come in for your teeth cleanings at the dentist’s office.

If you actually do an internet search to the question of which is better, the electric toothbrush or the manual brush, you will find all the articles stating the electric toothbrush wins. Why will you find that? Well as we started here, Electric toothbrushes are big business. The “studies” you will read in the internet articles will say, in general, electric toothbrushes do decrease more plaque and gingivitis than manual toothbrushes. After three months of use, plaque was reduced by 21 percent and gingivitis by 11 percent. Oscillating (rotating) toothbrushes seem to work better than just vibrating toothbrushes.

Studies are funded. It costs money to do research and where do you think the funds come from for these studies? You got it, the electric toothbrush companies wanting data to confirm that their product is better than manually brushing your teeth. Does this mean the data is incorrect? No, they’re not making up the numbers, but it is all about how the study is designed as well.

Is there a psychological advantage to electric toothbrushes?

There is certainly a psychological advantage to electric toothbrushes and the more bells and whistles on it will certainly make it feel like your money is paying for something as it has a two-minute timer and Bluetooth competitivity to connect to your smartphone to get real-time feedback on your brushing habits, and having seven modes to customize your brushing such as: daily cleaning, gum care, sensitive, whitening, tongue cleaning, intense and extra sensitive. Can you get that with a manual toothbrush?

The most important thing about brushing is holding the bristles at a 45-degree angle brushing along the space between your tooth and your gum where the plaque is accumulating but only loosely adhering in the tooth cervix. The main thing is consistency in brushing your teeth and proper technique must be practiced. You do not have to press hard or run the brush quickly across your teeth, but a smooth technique across the different quadrants and holding that angle and you will successfully dislodge the plaque. Pressing too hard can cause damage to your gums and enamel.

It is your choice as to whether you use an electric toothbrush or manually brush your teeth. With one you’ll pay a lot of money and increase your electrify use and other you can receive for free from your dentist’s office and you’ll be green.