Should you brush your teeth before or after meal? Doctor gives best dental practices

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), oral health is the state of the mouth, teeth, and orofacial structures that enable individuals to perform essential functions such as eating, breathing, and speaking.

Dr.Naftaly Macharia, a dental implant surgeon, appeared on The Day Break on Citizen TV and gave more insight into oral health care and its importance.

Dr.Naftaly states that brushing twice a day and after meals is important, “There is a controversy going around that you should brush before your meal but it should be after meals in the morning and in the evening for at least 2 minutes.”

“This is enough to remove the plaque causing cavities and other oral health diseases.”

Normally, people brush their teeth before breakfast with the thought that, they are getting rid of the bacteria of the previous night in order to eat breakfast with a fresh mouth.

This myth was debunked by Macharia, who said; “sugar is the most common cause of dental cavities, when you take bread it has sugar. If you brushed before you`ll end up the rest of the day with sugar in your mouth. It’s good to eat first so that you brush after, to wash away the sugar so that it doesn’t cause bacteria.”

Most people have ‘morning breath’ which is the bad breath that people have after sleeping. 

Dr Macharai gives further insight into this stating that it is caused by plaque that was formed throughout the night when one was not active.

It is important to brush one`s teeth before sleep to minimize the amount of plaque in the morning.

Macharia elaborated how one should brush their teeth, the types of toothbrushes one can use, and the importance of using the correct toothpaste.

“One should change their toothbrush every 3 months and should ensure they have the proper bristles for their teeth. There are three types of bristles the soft ones, the medium ones and the hard ones,” said Dr. Macharia.

“The soft ones are for the people who have gum disease and should be gentle on their gum, the medium ones are for regular people who don’t have issues while the hard ones are for the people who tend to smoke a lot and stain their teeth, the hard bristles effectively wash away the tar.”

Macharia further elaborated on the most effective way to brush teeth.

“Brush your teeth in gentle round circular motions moving everywhere gently. When one brushes up and down it causes the gum to recede over a period of time and will also cause sensitivity. On top of the teeth is where one can brush up and down.”

“Remember to also brush your tongue it is something that people also forget. Flossing is also important at least once a day before brushing because food packs between the teeth and causes cavities then after flossing and brushing one can use mouthwash,” advises the dentist. 

The doctor highlighted the importance of brushing the tongue with either a toothbrush or cleaning with a tongue scrapper in order to prevent bad breath. One may wonder why their breath still smells bad after brushing and this may be caused by not cleaning the tongue effectively.

There are very many types of toothpaste in the market and one may be confused about which one to use. There are two important components of toothpaste, one with fluoride that enhances the quality of the teeth while preventing cavities and abrasives that clean the plaque-causing bacteria.

“You should use fluoriated toothpaste because it comes to form a layer on top of the tooth to prevent bacteria that causes cavities,” says the dentist.

The medical practitioner debunked the myth that salt is effective for replacing toothpaste stating that one should stick to a toothbrush and toothpaste. However, he highlighted that a stick can be just as effective.

Dr. Macharia highlighted the importance of bi-annual dental checkups and stressed the importance of visiting the dentists early before the problem has deteriorated.