To rinse or not to rinse

WE know that it’s important that we take care of our oral health.

But while we were taught at school to rinse our mouth with water after brushing our teeth, in Hollywood movies or American TV shows we often see people just spitting out the toothpaste or mouthwash without rinsing.

So the question is – should you rinse your mouth afterwards, or just spit out the toothpaste or mouthwash?

I’ve asked many the same question but no one can claim to know the correct answer.

So I turned to an expert to find out. And what he says about this has been quite enlightening.

Dr Naresh Kumar is the dentist who removed my impacted wisdom tooth last year. He’s the gentlest dentist I know.

He not only runs his own clinic in Kuala Lumpur but has also been lecturing fourth-year undergraduates of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s Dental Faculty at Hospital Kuala Lumpur for the past 17 years.

“After brushing, spit out any excess toothpaste, but don’t rinse your mouth immediately after brushing,” advises Naresh.

He explains that rinsing will not only wash away the fluoride in the remaining toothpaste in our mouth, but also dilute it and reduce its preventative effects.

His advice is in line with the recommendations given by the United Kingdom’s National Health Service (NHS).

“Of course, for children with milk teeth, it is important to rinse out the toothpaste and to use very little toothpaste at all times,” cautions Naresh, who obtained his bachelor of dental surgery degree from Universiti Malaya.

He explains that “this is to prevent fluorosis, white spots, and defects on the erupting or unerupted permanent teeth”.

Naresh adds that children aged three to six years should use a slightly larger, ‘pea-sized’ amount of toothpaste containing fluoride.

It is also important that parents must supervise and help their young children with teeth brushing, since many of these children tend to instinctively swallow the toothpaste.

What about mouthwash? Once again, Naresh refers to the NHS guidelines.

He says: “Using a mouthwash that contains fluoride can help prevent tooth decay, but don’t use mouthwash (even a fluoride one) straight after brushing your teeth.

“Again, like rinsing, the mouthwash will just wash away the concentrated fluoride in the toothpaste left on your teeth.”

He also states that we should gargle with mouthwash at different times, such as after lunch, and “don’t eat or drink for 30 minutes after using a fluoride mouthwash”.

We also know how beneficial flossing is. When done regularly before brushing, it can help dislodge food wedged between our teeth, and reduce gum disease and bad breath by removing plaque that forms along the gum line.

But what about using tongue scrapers?

Naresh says using a tongue scraper can be beneficial. It is a fast way to remove extra particles from the surface of your tongue.

By scraping out such debris, bacteria and dead cells, our sense of taste improves, our tongue looks ‘cleaner’ and it will also help reduce bad breath.

Naresh’s parting advice to everyone: take time to brush your teeth thoroughly – at least two minutes (or longer) per session, and at least twice a day.

If you don’t have a fancy electric toothbrush with a two-minute timer, you can pick up a digital kitchen timer from your favourite thrift store and set it for two minutes before you start brushing your teeth.

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