I always apply my toothpaste in an amount that’s exactly half the length of the brush. But my SO says that’s not enough!
So, Dopers–How do you all use your toothpaste?
I use a dab about the size of a pea. More than that confers no benefit.
Your SO has watched too many advertisements. As **Qadgop **says, toothpaste should be pea sized. More is a waste of money and doesn’t get your teeth any cleaner, and may increase the risk of fluorisis of the tooth enamel.
Cites: My dentist and my nursing manuals.
Oh, ok…and here(family dentist’s website) and here(National Fluoride Information Centre) and here(CDC) and here(American Dental Association).
First you must wet the brush, then apply the toothpaste to the full length of the brush while making sure that you fill the spaces betwix the brissels. Then re-wet the toothpaste saturated brush, being careful not to wet it so much that the toothpaste washes off (I cring when that happens). Apply liberaly to teeth, gums, sides and roof of mouth and lastly to the tounge. Pea sized just aint gonna get it.
For all kinds of shit!
Has she ever read the directions right on the tube? It specifically says to use a pea sized amount, and not to swallow the paste! Maybe if you show that to her, plus the cites above, she’ll believe you? Does she make the pretty swirls on her brush, too, just like the commercials, so she’s essentially using a 2-inch long strip of paste loaded onto the brush? Ew.
I’m somewhere around half the brush to a little less. Pea sized just doesn’t feel like enough to me, and a full toothbrush is way too much.
My dental hygienist actually told me to stop using toothpaste altogether and just dip the toothbrush in listerine before brushing, or, if I have to use toothpaste, only use a tiny amount. Her explanation was, 1) it’s not the toothpaste that cleans your teeth, it’s the friction from brushing, and 2) all the foam from the toothpaste can fool you into thinking you’re getting your teeth cleaner than they actually are. (I still use toothpaste – about a pea’s worth.)
It’s the same issue with shampoo – lather doesn’t clean your hair, so just because your shampoo foams up really well doesn’t mean it cleans really well.
I got the same advice from a periodontist. He did not give a reason.
Where I grew up persons did not use toothpaste but rather a powder of sodium bicarbonate and something. The community did not appear to have any more dental problems than a nearby community where paste was available.
The best method is to force the paste INTO the bristles. Put the mouth of the tube perpendicular to bristles and in direct, firm contact with them. Squeeze the tube. Most of the paste will get caught in the bristles and only a little will remain on top.
Now, as you brush, the paste will gradually leach out insuring that you get at least some of paste on every spot that the brush touches.
OT, but important - get a high flouride paste. In the US you can only get this by prescription and dentists don’t like to give it to you. I don’t know why for sure, but I have to assume that since it is so incredible at preventing cavities, that they figure it will cut into their business.
The brand name is Prevident. There is a gel and a paste. The gel is perfect for using in form-fitting dental trays but can be used for brushing. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find this online. The paste is called Prevident 5000+ and is available from a few different Canadian vendors.
Really? That’s surprising. I used to be a Listerine fanatic until my dentist told me to stop using it completely. She said Listerine is bad for your gums because it dries them out, and can actually contribute to persistent bad breath because of the alcohol’s penetration in the tight spaces below the gum line. Just the thought of brushing my teeth with Listerine makes me uncomfortable. I’ve used Tom’s of Maine as a mouth rinse ever since. (bolding mine)
If your water is fluoridated, there’s no reason to buy a high fluoride toothpaste. Indeed, excess fluoride can create brown spots on the enamel of the teeth, a condition known as fluorosis. See the CDC link I posted earlier for more information about this condition.
I haven’t researched it but I’ve used both products for several years and don’t have any brown spots. Although characterized as having a “high concentration”, that is a relative term and the actual concentration is only 1.1%
As for flouridated water, does this work by direct contact with the enamel or via systemic absorption and indirect contact (eg, as fluoride is secreted along with saliva for example)?
Either way, the actual amount of fluoride is so low I doubt that it is any where near as effective as a 1.1% gel/paste. But if you can point to an authoritative source that proves me wrong, I would be most appreciative.
This is a joke thread. Don’t waste your time looking up cites.
Yeah, I don’t know. I didn’t listen to her advice anyway. I can’t stand the taste of Listerine, in any flavor.
But I use Tom’s of Maine’s toothpaste, so I feel a kinship with you. 
I use only a pea sized amount. I hate too much foam.
I’m still learning things anyway.
Hey, did you know that the toothpaste industry decided years ago that they wanted to sell more paste, so they widened the mouth of toothpaste tubes so people would run out of it sooner? I suspect the same thing has happened with my Comet bathroom cleaner - I recently bought a new can, and the holes are bigger so more cleaner comes out. Until I realized what was going on, I used far more than I normally would have used.
I shoulda picked up on that … ACM doesn’t have an SO, does he?
nm
If I use more than about that much, I get way too much foam. I was taught to cover about 3/4 of the length of the brush by my parents, but then I actually read the directions. My dental hygienist gave me a little 3 minute hourglass (which neither measures an hour nor is it made of glass) to time my toothbrushings.
Side rant: why did toothbrush makers change the shape of the handles? I can see the fatter handles being easier to hold for arthritis sufferers, but ordinary toothbrush handles used to be more rectangular, and now they’re squarer, and don’t fit in my old toothbrush holders. [/rant]
When you take that adhesive paper off the top, put it right back on, covering about 5 of the 7 holes. Or even cover up five holes and two half-holes. My grandma taught me that trick. You can always shake more out of the can. Also, wet down the surface to be cleaned, and then sprinkle and let it set for a few seconds.