Electric tooth brushes.

I read a story in the paper about how, in Japan which has many very old people, electric toothbrushes are prolonging life. Apparently, bacteria which cause a form of pnuemonia (fatal to oldies!) lodge in the teeth and older people don't have the strength or agility to dislodge the debris. Electric toothbrushes are effective in cleaning away the bacteria and residential home survival rates have improved noticeably.

It made me think that 'going electric' was a very good idea. I have no notion that electric toothbrushes were so effective.

I have an Oral B which I hardly ever use. Why, because I find it difficult to clean back teeth with it. Any tips?

I use an electric toothbrush and have never had any problems with fillings or implants. Perhaps janeainsworth will give you some advice when she sees this thread!

My dentist told me to chance to electric some years ago & since then I have had no gum problems & my teeth rarely need any thing done to them. I love it.
Good tip to help core strength & balance as we get older is to stand on one leg while brushing top teeth & other leg when doing bottom teeth. Amazing how quickly your balance improves!
As toothbrush has a timer you know how long to brush & balance.

Have used electric toothbrush for a number of years now. So much better than manual.

I love my electric toothbrush. Even better I practise oil swishing or oil pulling, i.e. swishing olive or coconut oil round the mouth for a few minutes before brushing. The oil gathers the bacteria and then you spit it out (obviously) - down the loo. My dentist congratulated me on my clean mouth when I first started and now just keeps telling me to carry on.

My sister, who had persistent gum disease, found that using an electric toothbrush put an end to that problem. I have been using either a battery powered or rechargeable toothbrush for many years now and have never dislodged any of my multiple fillings or crowns. OP, have confidence and ask Santa for a rechargeable brush!

I've also used them for years, not had to have any treatment since I started! I've had an expensive one and now I've got a much cheaper one which is just as good.
We've just bought them for little gd, ( one at each house) and her dentist is very pleased with her teeth.

Lilyflower you are right. My US dentist got my elderly dad using a battery one and he was so happy as it took so much less effort.

We use them, the sonics, and I can tell I don't get that nasty placque build-up on the bottom inside from teeth that you can actually feel with your tongue when it take a hold. Yuck.

I am curious about something else dental and would like to ask... do any of you or your OH's sleep with their bridge-work in? My DH has had this since his teens (rugby) and he only takes it out to clean and back in it goes. His dentists, both when we were in the US and now here, say that's OK?

I've been using one for several years too and feel they clean much better than a normal toothbrush. I have very poor teeth and gums but the damage certainly seems to have slowed down since the buzzy brush. Never have to go to the hygienist as I have no build-up of plaque.

You do become accustomed to the buzzing and as one with many fillings, they don't wheech them out!!!

I have one they are great my teeth always feel smoother. When I have to charge it and use a normal toothbrush it's not the same. My dentist recommends them.

I've used one for years and definitely recommend them. I converted my late dad in his 80s and he said his dentist noticed the difference.

As PPs have said, they are often heavily discounted, I've never paid full price for one, and I stock up on brush heads when they are on offer.

I used to be quite dentist phobic and didn't go for a few years. The fact that I didn't need anything other than one filling when I eventually conquered my fear is, I think, partly down to the electric toothbrush. Having said that, my way of dealing with my phobia is to be a bit obsessive about my teeth - I floss, have the tepe brushes and a water flosser, and I brush after every meal. It's working though - I only have three fillings and great gum health.

Philips Sonic toothbrushes are wonderful. I have more fillings than teeth, even though my mum was hot on us going to the dentist, but my dental bills have dropped since using my Philips. Would never go back to manual brushing.

I have used an electric toothbrush for years. and I too have lots of fillings, plus crowns. I recently had to spend 5 weeks in hospital (don't ask!!) and missed our electric brush so badly when I used an ordinary brush, that my husband bought me a battery-operated one to use instead. Try as I might with the ordinary brush, my teeth just didn't feel as clean. The battery one was an improvement, but not as good as our rechargeable one. It was one of the (many, many) pleasures of being discharged that my teeth felt properly clean again.

I have a Phillips Sonicare which has three functions: clean, sensitive and clean & white, all timed, back and front teeth taking 3 minutes, or you can just select the clean function for 2 minutes. Bought on Amazon years ago and love it - really makes a huge difference. Also buy brush heads on Amazon using their

I bought Electric Toothbrush on Dentist's advice - sadly I couldn't get along with it as I have Peripheral Neuropathy in my fingers - could't stand the vibration

I did like the feel of my teeth after using it but had to give up. DH wouldn't even try it so that was a waste of money

I would say go for it I'm sure you'll be happy

I've been using a Sonicare toothbrush for years. Would never go back to an ordinary one as nothing beats the clean, polished feeling you get from a sonic toothbrush. In fact, my dentist once remarked, when I went for a check up, that he'd never seen teeth so clean.

Sorry, hit send button by mistake. Using Amazon's automatic system. Not had any trouble with fillings or crowns. Definitely recommend using one - just go gently to begin with.

Big yes to electric tooth brush - as good a one as you can afford. They make a big difference.I have very iffy teeth and nothing has dropped out or off since I started using one. The other thing that's made a big difference is the use of those little TePe brushes that go between the teeth and dislodge debris there. They come in a range of sizes to cope with different sized gaps. Since using those and the electric brush I no longer have bleeding and soft gums, and am more confident about my breath. I am more comfortable with those than flossing.
I wouldn't go back to an ordinary tooth brush now.

We've just replaced our toothbrushes. Sainsburys are doing a Nectar points deal, double up points, so the £20 Oral B toothbrushes cost us £5 each in Nectar points. Better be quick though, they were going like hot cakes. They were already reduced from £40, so even better!

I switched to an electric toothbrush some time ago on the advice of my dentist and am very happy with it, I have a few fillings and a crown which so far have remained intact.

I used an electric toothbrush for years but am now suffering form extremely sensitive teeth, My dentist advised going back to a hand brush to avoid overbrushing and to use a soft brush. Since doing so I have had much less trouble. Seems I was overzealous with the electric one, of course they have improved no end now with all sorts of warning systems in place. I also had a battery one for emergencies and travelling, word of warning though, if you are packing it in your suitcase take the battery out, I didn't and nearly caused a riot when it started buzzing when it was being loaded into the hold when flying back home!!!!

Another vote here for the Sonic! Amazing! I noticed my sons teeth were looking whiter and actually asked if he had been whitening them! He had simply changed to a Sonic over a couple of weeks that was the difference.
I now use one and find it much preferable to even the normal electric ones. I too have a very poor mouth, full of crowns, fillings and one implant so am very, very tooth aware.

I've used an electric toothbrush for years too, lots of crowns and fillings, I think they just make your teeth feel so much cleaner, have definitely cut down on dental treatments, I see the hygienist merely to remove stains caused by drinking black tea.

One point I haven't seen mentioned is that if you can still find one, go for battery operated - they are not expensive to run as the batteries last quite a long time. It is difficult to find somewhere to leave rechargeables plugged in - bearing in mind they have to be out of reach of pets which lick them or small children who use them to clean all sorts of things - if you don't leave them plugged in they will die at inconvenient moments!