How electric toothbrush can destroy your teeth

Dentists are reportedly seeing an increase number of patients with gum problems. For 40-year-old Natasha, like millions, loved the fresh, smooth feeling a blast with a powerful electric toothbrush gave her. So much so, that she wore away the protective layer of her tooth enamel, and exposed the sensitive root, with inevitable, painful consequences. The dentist’s diagnosis came as a shock. ‘She blamed my electric toothbrush,’ says Natasha, from London. ‘I am a fastidious brusher and the dentist said it was likely I was over-brushing: using the brush too vigorously or brushing for longer than two minutes.’
Natasha’s story is not uncommon and marks a rise in the backlash against the use of electric toothbrushes, which have become more powerful over the years. Some now provide up to 8,800 oscillations per minute and they’re getting more expensive, too, with devotees paying up to £170 for them. As a result, more and more dentists are advising a return to old-fashioned, manual brushing. ‘I’m seeing an increasing number of patients with abrasion cavities and gum problems after using these powerful electric gadgets in the wrong way,’ says Dr Beeta Salek-Haddadi, a cosmetic dentist at Smile Solutions in London.
‘People are brushing too hard and fast with them and it’s causing damage.’
Invented in Switzerland in 1954 by Dr Philippe-Guy Woog, the electric toothbrush was hailed as a great innovation. Not only were they more efficient at removing plaque, dentists said they could also reduce incidents of gingivitis - an inflammation of the gums that can lead to tooth loss - by more than 17 per cent in three months. But not everyone was convinced. A study published in the Journal of Clinical Periodontology as far back as 2003 was already highlighting problems with electric brushes, claiming it was practically impossible for the average person to be able to tell if they were applying too much pressure. Consequently, dentists started seeing patients with permanently damaged teeth enamel and gum recession.
Dr Sameer Patel, clinical director at Elleven Dental in London, suggests it’s not the electric toothbrushes that cause the damage, but the way people use them.
‘Hardly anyone uses them correctly,’ he says. ‘You’re meant to hold it next to the tooth surface, angling the brush towards the gums at a 45-degree angle.
‘But most people use it like a manual toothbrush and will furiously move it across the teeth themselves, causing the enamel to thin out and the gum to be pushed down, making it more sensitive.’
And once enamel has gone, it’s gone for ever. ‘It can’t repair or regrow,’ adds Dr Salek-Haddidi. ‘We have to use fillers or reposition the gum, which can be costly and uncomfortable.’
The way forward, she believes, is either re-learning the proper brushing technique with the help of a dental hygienist or returning to manual brushing using softer brushes, which bend on contact and can easily get into the grooves between tooth and gum. According to Bussink, the best way to clean your teeth is to use as little pressure as possible, and to move your brush in small circular movements at a slight angle, half on the gum and half on the tooth.
‘Cleaning the gum line is vital, as bacteria accumulates here and form deposits,’ she says.
Children, in particular, should never be given an electric toothbrush, warns Dr Salek-Haddidi.
If, as an adult, you are still wedded to the idea of an electric toothbrush, Dr Patel and Dr Salek-Haddidi agree that a sonic version is your best bet.
Though pricier, around £100, they use vibration to buff teeth and force toothpaste between them. They also have a pressure sensor which beeps if you overdo it.