Spring Clean Your Dental Routine By Kaitlin Lambert on May 21, 2018

Spring Clean Your Dental Supplies!

It’s that time of year already: spring cleaning time! School is almost out for the summer, and as you do that nice clean sweep of your house, don’t forget to clear out a few items from your dental supply cabinet, too! Here is a short list of suggestions for what to keep and what to pitch.

· Toothbrushes:

· Current tooth brush: If it’s older than three months, PITCH IT! You should replace your toothbrush every three months. This includes brush heads for electric tooth brushes, and tips for your WaterPik or Air Flosser!

· Hard and medium bristle tooth brushes: PITCH IT! Only soft or extra-soft bristles are ever recommended. Harder bristles are hard on your enamel and your gums, and they actually do not work as well.

· Tooth paste:

· Expired tooth paste: It doesn’t become toxic after expiration, but the Fluoride in tooth paste does lose efficacy beyond a certain time frame. If it’s only slightly expired, you can probably finish out the tube, but otherwise PITCH IT!

· Harsh and abrasive tooth pastes: If you have recession or sensitivity, PITCH IT! This includes anything with whitening, tartar control, or baking soda.

· Mouthwash:

· Scope: PITCH IT! This product has no germ killing ingredients, and no Fluoride to strengthen teeth. It’s a liquid breath mint.

· Listerine or ACT: KEEP IT! Follow the same guidelines as expiration dates for tooth paste, but these rinses stay good and effective for a long time. You just have to use them.

· Old spools of floss:

· KEEP IT! Same principle as Listerine; you gotta use it! But floss never goes bad. As you re-organize your cabinets, put your floss somewhere prominent, where it’s staring you down every day so you can’t forget about it. I keep mine on top of my tooth paste, so I can’t brush without picking up my floss first.

· Broken Sonicare:

· If your Sonicare is not too old, you may be able to contact customer service about a replacement. They have a great customer service department. So, maybe don’t pitch it quite yet.