Should You Brush Your Teeth Before or After Breakfast?

If you’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it a thousand times: you should brush your teeth twice daily for two minutes a piece. That said, timing the practice can get tricky when you first wake up for the day. Namely, you might not know whether to brush before or after your morning meal. Fortunately, though, your local dental practice can give you a solid answer. Here’s why brushing your teeth before breakfast in Wethersfield is the ideal option.

Before-Breakfast Brushing Helps Oral Health

Even if you feel tempted to start the morning with food, you should brush your teeth first. Doing so will strengthen your oral health.

You see, harmful bacteria multiply in your mouth as you sleep. (This growth is part of why you wake with so-called “morning breath.”) When you brush right after waking, then, you remove these nasty microbes before they can harm your teeth. Plus, the fluoride in your toothpaste protects your enamel from food-related acids.

After-Breakfast Brushing Harms Enamel

Brushing your teeth after breakfast could harm them. More specifically, doing so would cover your teeth with acidic food remnants that weaken enamel. These could include bits from orange juice, bread, pastries, and more.

Still, you could reduce this risk. All you’d have to do is wait thirty minutes to an hour after eating to brush your teeth. That way, any remaining acids on your teeth will have a chance to fade. You could also drink water or chew sugar-free gum to pre-clean before brushing.

Proper Brushing Tips

Whether you brush before or after breakfast, you should use the proper technique. As such, always remember to follow the steps below:

1. First, wet your brush head with some water to lubricate it. You can then add a small amount of fluoridated toothpaste.
2. Brush your teeth at an angle to ensure you get hard-to-reach spots. Furthermore, continue the process for two minutes so you cover your front teeth, your tooth sides, and the chewing surface of your pearly whites.
3. Use your toothbrush to remove the bacterial residue from your tongue. Said bacteria can accumulate during the brushing process.
4. Spit out any leftover toothpaste and rinse your mouth with clean water.

As you can see, there’s a good reason for brushing your teeth before breakfast in Wethersfield. Therefore, try to maintain that habit in the future!

About the Author

Dr. Ukti Phadnis is a dentist based in Wethersfield, CT, having earned her DDM from the UConn School of Dental Medicine. Her specialties are preventive, cosmetic, and restorative dentistry, not to mention emergency care procedures. She also keeps up with the latest dental advances through continuing education courses and provides fast and effective treatment. Dr. Phadnis currently practices at Wethersfield Dental Group and is reachable on her website or by phone at (860)-400-3007.