Brushing your teeth is an act we do daily, but it seems many of us may have been doing it wrong this whole time.
Functional dentist Dr. Victoria Sampson has made some bold claims about the proper way to brush your teeth, and it’s sent the internet into a spiral.
Dr. Sampson appeared on Steven Bartlett’s The Diary of a CEO podcast and claimed that you should never rinse your mouth after brushing your teeth.
In a clip shared on social media, Dr. Sampson says, “Brush, brush, brush, spit into the basin, and that’s it.”
“Reason being, going back to my sunscreen analogy, imagine you spend two minutes putting all this lovely sunscreen all over your skin to just go and then have a shower right before you go into the sun,” she said.
“So with the toothpaste, you spend two minutes putting all of that on your teeth, and then if you rinse it, you’re actually removing all of that goodness from your teeth and gums, and it’s kind of like you haven’t done anything.”
The reactions online were mixed, from people insisting this was the only way to being surprised that others were not aware of this.
“I thought everybody did this,” one person commented.
“Look, I’m 34 y’all. Used to rinse. I had horrible cavities for years. Haven’t had a single one since I started flossing and spitting only. Go do it now, before you go to bed, and thank me in 10 years,” another said.
“My life has been a lie,” one person said.
However, it seems the majority of people online have disagreed with her sentiment.
“But the toothpaste instruction says you should rinse thoroughly,” one person argued.
“They rinse at the dentist though,” another pointed out.
“Disagree completely,” someone else weighed in.
According to NSW Health, people should brush their teeth twice daily with a pea-sized amount of fluoride toothpaste.
After brushing, spit out the toothpaste and do not rinse with water.
Leaving a small amount of fluoride toothpaste around your teeth will help strengthen them. Fluoride enhances the tooth’s outer surface, making it more resistant to acid attacks and sugars. It can also reduce tooth decay, as well as prevent the growth of harmful bacteria.
NSW Health also recommends using dental floss between your teeth daily.
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