# When do I brush??
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-do-i-brush/121233
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [July 28, 2002, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-do-i-brush/121233 "2002-07-28T14:10:50Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Jukeball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jukeball)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2002, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-do-i-brush/121233/1 "2002-07-28T14:10:50Z")
i dont brush at nite , My mom tells me the first , the absolute first , thing I should do is get up and brush my teeth. According to me I should have my breakfast and then brush ,cause brushing first just does not make sense and the eating immediately after that so that my teeth need brushing again!:smack:
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### Author:  [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2002, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-do-i-brush/121233/2 "2002-07-28T16:23:56Z")
Listen to your Mother.
And then start brushing your teeth at night before bed and after every meal.
You will thank your Mother in 50 years time. 🙂
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### Author:  [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2002, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-do-i-brush/121233/3 "2002-07-28T16:47:10Z")
Well the ADA didn’t say when, but here’s the British opinion:
> [@](#):
>
> It is important that you brush twice a day. The best times are before breakfast and last thing at night before you go to bed. Eating and drinking naturally weakens the enamel on your teeth, and brushing straight afterwards can cause tiny particles of enamel to be brushed away. It is best not to brush your teeth until at least 30 minutes after eating.
So your mother is right, if the Empire’s dental hygiene is anything to be emulated.
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### Author:  [@Lsura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lsura)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2002, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-do-i-brush/121233/4 "2002-07-28T16:52:33Z")
You should brush before you go to bed. You should brush when you get up in the morning, and ideally, you should brush midday, after lunch. Add in flossing at some point as well.
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### Author:  [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2002, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-do-i-brush/121233/5 "2002-07-28T17:39:17Z")
My dentist told me that brushing before bed was the most important time. If you don’t brush before going to bed, the acidic plaque that’s already there gets an extra eight hours to work on the enamel.
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### Author:  [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)
#### Post date: [July 28, 2002, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-do-i-brush/121233/6 "2002-07-28T18:01:04Z")
I have not brushed my teeth in thirty years, and never had a cavity. I floss and use mouthwash when needed. I do see a dentist periodically for checkups and cleaning. Lest you think my teeth must look awful, the dental hygenist even told me I had “nice teeth.” Fluoridated water has been good to me, apparently.
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### Author:  [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)
#### Post date: [July 29, 2002, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-do-i-brush/121233/7 "2002-07-29T00:36:14Z")
I don’t see the point in brushing upon awakening if you brushed (your teeth that is - brushing your hair (assuming you have hair) - won’t help at all) before you went to bed. I brush three times a day and floss once a day. I brush my teeth after eating breakfast, after lunch, and after dinner, flossing usually after dinner. And my dentist said that I have the strongest teeth that he’s ever hit a hammer against. He loves to pound my teeth to hear the nice loud clang. He also said that studies show that it takes 24 hours for plaque to build up, so all you really need to do is brush once a day. However, who brushes adequately with one brushing? When I was in grammar school, I learned that a teeth brushing should take 3 minutes. Now, with the advent of automatic brushes that cycle only for 2 minutes, the time was reduced to 2 minutes. Time yourself. I never even take the two minutes. So I figure with three brushings I’m bound to get one good brushing in.