Teeth cleaning is an important aspect of personal oral hygiene. There are an array of teeth cleaning aids available for use worldwide. However, the most commonly used teeth cleaning aids in our environment are toothbrushes and toothpastes. According to dentists, many Nigerians prefer hard bristle toothbrushes to the other types of toothbrush.
Due to increasing oral health awareness, the use of toothbrushes and toothpastes for maintaining oral hygiene have become widespread. Even people in the rural communities, nowadays, use toothbrushes for cleaning their teeth instead of the traditional cleaning agents they were used to.
Many thanks to the Nigerian Dental Association (NDA) and producers of oral health products like Oral B and Colgate Palmolive for their contributions in carrying out oral health awareness campaigns in our schools and communities.
What Is a Toothbrush?
A toothbrush is a tool used to clean the teeth, gums and tongue. It is used in addition with a toothpaste. Toothbrush consists of a handle, neck and head. The head is the part that contains the bristles or filaments. These bristles are arranged into small groups known as tufts. They perform the actual work of cleaning through a mechanical action. Toothbrushing is the process of to cleaning the oral cavity by using a toothbrush.
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There are different types of toothbrushes available in the market. According to the consistency of the bristles used, a toothbrush can be soft, medium, hard or extra hard.
Most of the people who use hard bristle toothbrushes claim that these brushes clean their teeth better. As popular as this opinion may seem, it is not correct. On the contrary, the hard toothbrushes do more harm than good. As a matter of fact, this mindset is the reason a lot of individuals are suffering from certain preventable dental problems.
What Are the Dangers of Using Hard Bristle Toothbrushes
The use of hard bristle toothbrushes can predispose an individual to a range of dental problems. Let’s x-ray the problems that are top on the list.
1. Trauma to the gums
Hard bristle toothbrushes generate excessive frictional force when used to clean the teeth. This can cause bruising or direct injury to the gums. Gum injury could lead to gum bleeding and pain.
injury to the gingiva is quite a painful experience. The wounds cause a lot of discomfort during feeding, especially if the food is hot and/or spicy.
Hard bristle toothbrushes can also cause injury to the tongue or any other part of the oral cavity.
2. Gingival recession
Gingival recession is another direct result that could arise from the abrasive effect of using a hard bristle toothbrush. Receding gums refer to the wearing away of the gum from the level at which it is attached to the neck of the tooth. Receding gums expose the root of the tooth.
The gums, apart from giving the oral cavity its characteristic coral pink colour, also plays a role in supporting the teeth and keeping them firm in the mouth. So, what do you think would happen if the gums are worn down? The affected teeth could begin to Shake.
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Gingival recession is one of the causes of shaking teeth which dentists also referred to as teeth mobility. Shaking teeth make chewing unpleasant and also interfere with speech. It can be a source of worry to the affected individual, and in worse cases, may affect the person’s self confidence.
3. Tooth wear problems
The mechanical action of brushing causes wear and tear on the teeth when using hard bristle toothbrushes.
Tooth wear refers to the gradual but irreversible loss of tooth substance. The major tooth wear lesion caused by using hard bristle toothbrushes occurs as a gutter-like depression seen at the neck of the tooth; the position where the gum meets the teeth. This type of dental hard tissue loss is referred to as cervical abrasion. People usually mistake it for tooth decay.
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Some individuals, in addition to using hard bristle tooth brushes are also overzealous in brushing their teeth. Overzealous toothbrushing is the use of excessive force during teeth brushing and also involves brushing the teeth several times in a day. Overzealous brushers think brushing with excessive force will make their teeth whiter but little do they know that they are gradually abrading their tooth substance and could come down with cervical abrasion.
If this problem is not treated on time and is allowed to progress, it may lead to more serious dental problems. Pain, severe shocking sensation, or eventual loss of the affected tooth could occur
4. Tooth sensitivity
Tooth sensitivity is a shocking sensation that is experienced when a part of the tooth known as dentin is exposed. The dentin is protected by the enamel. But when it becomes exposed through either tooth wear problems or receding gums, tooth sensitivity tends to occur.
A sensitive tooth will show an exaggerated response to certain conditions and food substances known as triggers. Some of them include cold and hot substances, certain fruits like grape, pineapple, some drinks like wine and carbonated drinks.
5. Pain
When there is an injury to the soft tissues of the oral cavity and the teeth, there is usually pain. Pain is an unpleasant experience. Cervical abrasion may result in toothache if the pulp chamber of a tooth becomes affected.
Severe toothache sometimes can cause headache and also disturb sleep. dental abscess can occur in some cases. Dental abscess is the swelling of the gum and bone caused by the buildup of pus within the affected area. The formation of abscess usually increases the intensity of the pain.
Toothache affects the general health of an individual and can reduce one’s productivity.
6. Tooth loss
Let me mention some of the ways through which the use of hard bristle toothbrushes can result in eventual loss of one’s tooth or teeth.
First is through tooth mobility. A tooth begins to shake if its support is inadequate. As we have already seen, gum recession can predispose to tooth mobility. If the mobility becomes severe, the only option left for the dentist to relieve the patient of the associated discomfort would be to remove the tooth. In some cases, the tooth will dislodge from the mouth on its own due to very weak support.
Second is as a result of cervical abrasion. If the cervical abrasion is severe, causes a lot of pain, and unrestorable, the next thing will be to remove the affected tooth.
There are instances where the cervical abrasion involves a considerable amount of the tooth substance to the extent that what is left is too weak to withstand the force of chewing. A tooth with this level of compromise can easily fracture on the slightest attempt to chew.
Conclusion
Hard bristle toothbrushes can have a deleterious impact on our oral health. That is why dentists recommend soft or medium bristle toothbrushes, which are both safe and effective in cleaning the teeth.
If you are suffering from any of the complications of using hard bristles toothbrushes already discussed, I suggest you see your dentist as soon as possible for adequate care.
