Not that I don’t, just that I don’t have to. When I was far, far younger, I used to brush approximately once a month, or immediately before a dental appointment. The hygienists would always praise my brushing thoroughness, and I never had so much as the beginnings of a cavity, despite my severe fondness for sugar.
I would have been the poster boy for Crest, except I never used it.
Today, I brush once or twice a day. Less than I ‘should,’ but I’ve still never had bad breath, much less dental problems.
Massive bad karma is building because of your lack of toothal attention. You will soon lose all your teeth at once! The good news is that you still won’t have to brush.
I’m kinda the same way. I used to brush every other day just once a day and although I’d get told to brush better, I never got a cavity. Then when I was 19 I went to the dentist and suddenly had six cavities! The next year I went, I had none. Weird. Now I brush everday, though still just once at night, and I don’t think I’ve ever flossed in my life though I do use mouthwash after brushing, if that counts for anything.
Just because you never had a cavity doesn’t mean that you’ll never have one. As far as the bad breath thing, if you can smell it, ITS REALLY BAD, so just because you can smell it doesn’t mean your breath smells like fresh air. Unfortunately, you posted this, so karma will make a visit to your mouth soon and reek havok on your gums! Enjoy! Peace.
Christ, how much do people brush these days? Most people I know at MOST brush twice a day. I usually just brush once (in the morning). I haven’t had a cavity or filling in ten years.
Tenar has a good idea, but I’d guess that by now you’ve played “tonsil hockey” with a member of the appropriate sex, and thus, your teeth are virgin no loger, alas.
The idea that a person could reach adulthood and still have an aseptic mouth (or at least devoid of the bacteria that cause plaque and tooth decay) is just plain absurd.
Cavities aren’t the only issue. Prevention of gum disease is a very important reason to brush, although I would imagine it would show up soon after a stretch of no brushing.
I have brushed twice daily for most of my life. Nothing unusual about that, it’s just good hygiene. Years ago people thought it was OK to bathe once a week whether they needed it or not. Now we know better.
Indeed. But isn’t it possible that there are differences in, say, their saliva? Or maybe in how much saliva they even produce, and couldn’t that make a difference?
I’m also a person who gets away with dental neglect. I brush regularly, but there was a stretch of nearly 20 years where I didn’t get any dental care, and at the end of that things weren’t really as bad as one would expect.
As the husband of a dentist (and constantly screamed at for my lousy brushing habits), I have some input: as an adult brushing is primarily intended to stimulate and save your gums. Flossing is almost equally as important. A lot of it is luck and/or genetics. I have perfect teeth, but some of my periodontal measurements are at 4mm (which I’m told is bad, so I try to brush and floss more). My wife, the ever-conscious brusher/flosser/dentist has more root canals and crowns that I can remember.
On younger people with younger teeth, dental enamel is not as developed on older people. That’s why children get cavities a lot more often than adults, even given the varied brushing frequencies. This is also why adults don’t get flouride treatment at the dentist, while it’s done for children all the time.
If you’re concerned about flouride, stop drinking bottled water and stop using the filter in your refrigerator. Your municipal water supply (those that have 'em) will provide the flouride you need. If you have children, talk to you dentist about incidents of flouridosis (sp?) in your area – this causes spots on teeth from too much flouride.
I brush my teeth once a day, use mouthwash once a day and only floss when I got an annoying piece of meat or something between my teeth.
I have never had a cavity in my 30 some years on Earth, but just recently I had a very bad experience.
About a month ago I was eating some hamburger helper and bit into something hard which proceeded to break one of my teeth completely in half, no pain though thankfully.
Went to the dentist the next day hoping he could glue them back together or something and he “fixed” it by making more pain for me then the actual broken tooth by pulling the remainder out. Supposed to go back for a fakie tooth but see no need as the tooth is in the back and not noticable.
Anyway had the dentist tell me the reason my tooth was weak was from not flossing nor brushing properly in the back of my mouth. He said not having cavities and teeth looking ok are not the only signs of problems.
Been brushing after every meal since and flossing twice a day
Just my two cents in the jar
Tenar has the right thrust here. Plaque often mutates into an anaerobic version that migrates under the gum line, and coats the roots of your teeth. This then reacts to the bone that holds your teeth in place by disintegrating it. This is a painless process, and by the time you start to realize it, it is already time to start losing the teeth.
Start brushing, and start flossing. Daily. Otherwise, you’ll look bad at this thread you started with wistful longing. And you’ll have dentures, or have paid thousands of dollars for the detists to install posts and caps. Your choice.
I stopped brushing my teeth when I was in grade school. Thirty-some years later, I have not brushed my teeth once since that time, although I go to the dentist periodically for cleaning and exams. In all those years, I have had three cavities, which is either at or below the average for all you dutiful daily brushers. I do floss as needed, and use mouthwash.
P.S. The last two times I was at the dentist’s office, the hygenists told me I had “nice teeth.”
I imagine that the exposed area would be more prone to infection and other general mouth/gum/dental problems. The fake tooth would fill that gap and perhaps help the other teeth. IANAD, and I’m just speculating.
Generally, I distrust dentists. I think many (though not most) dentists lie about cavities and fill non-existant ones, especially in children. Because insurance will only pay for one visit every 6 months, I think people don’t get a second opinion.
I once had a friend who didn’t ever brush his teeth because he didn’t get cavities. He believed he didn’t have bad breath. . . but he most certainly did. It was probably the number one reason he had problems with women – very few went out with him more than once, even though he was a really sweet guy. Several major hints were sent his way, but I guess he thought his breath was okay if it didn’t stink to him.
I don’t think I could stand for very long the slimy way my mouth feels if I don’t brush my teeth regularly.