I love when a patient returns to my office for a routine appointment and thanks me for recommending an electric brush. I have been recommending electric brushes for the past 20 years and am certain I have converted many dozens of family from manual to electric brushes. I think so highly of the electric brushes, I wish I could get away with charging manual brushes more for their cleaning appointment and use the extra money to cover the cost of giving them an electric brush on the way out of the office after the cleaning!
There are two brushes I recommend. The Oral-B and the Sonicare. The Oral-B is my favorite but either is a fine choice. I favor the Oral-B because of the compact head and lower cost of head replacement. Until a recent redesign of the Sonicare, my preference was even stronger for the Oral-B. The newer Sonicare units have a less expensive, easier to replace head than the prior model. The old model Sonicare is still available so be sure you don’t accidentally purchase the old model. You can tell the difference easily since the new model has simple snap on brush heads and the old one has giant screw on heads.
The Timer: I believe all the electric brushes you can buy today have some sort of timer. Some pulse the brush action, some beep. Whatever type you are using it is IMPORTANT to know if the timer is indicating to change which quarter of the mouth you should be brushing, or indicating that you are done. You should brush for 2 minutes and typically the timer will indicate at the 30 second mark, indicating you should start in the next quadrant. There are four quadrants, i.e., upper right, upper left, lower right, lower left so if you follow the timer you will brush each quadrant for 30 seconds. Perfect! If you brush all over and quit when the timer rings, you will be brushing inadequately. If you aren’t sure how your brush works, get a watch or clock with a second hand and time it.
Gum recession: Studies show that properly brushing with either an electric toothbrush or manual brush will not encourage gum recession. In my experience, most gum recession is caused by excessive clenching or gritting of the teeth. This can occur in your sleep and you may not be aware of it. If you suspect you may be clenching or grinding in your sleep you may want to purchase an over the counter device to minimize the effect. You can find more information here.
This is an Oral B Vitality Electric Brush on the left. This is a low cost brush that doesn’t skimp on performance. It works much better than a manual brush and is probably the best value for the money. It has a timer too! You might want to select this brush if you want to experience an electric brush but are not sure if you will be happy. If you aren’t, you haven’t spent an arm and a leg. If you click on the image, you will be taken to Amazon where you can read more information and reviews of this brush. Buy from Amazon or your local retailer.
My favorite Oral-B brush is either their 4000 or 5000 series as linked to on the right. I like the extra action of the head as it not only counter rotates the brush head, but it also pulses in and out. Either of these units will stop the pulsation if you apply too much pressure, thus encouraging a gentle brush action. Also, the 5000 series has an external display that will indicate time, quadrant and most importantly, if you are pressing too hard. Here is a link to the 5000 product at Amazon. At Amazon, it costs just a few dollars more than the 4000 so if you are going to buy at Amazon, buy the 5000. If you shop at Costco, you are likely to find one of these units. The thing I like about Costco is their fabulous return policy. While I am sure you will like the brush, save your box and return it it you aren’t 100% satisfied!
Now on to Oral-B’s competition! I have always felt that the Oral-B was a better brusher, but studies show them to be very equivalent in that matter. So, I suppose my feelings represent a personal bias. Possibly that bias is based on the way the Sonicare works. The bristles vibrate, instead of rotating or moving visibly. You can see the vibration, the bristles vibrate so fast they look like a blur! This vibration is what does the cleaning. So why do I not love this? The vibration sends a chill right through my brain. Like fingernails on a chalk board… If I touch the palm of my hand with the bristles in motion, I cannot stand the sensation. This however may simply be classified as a personal problem… To be honest, many of my patients LOVE this brush, including my oldest daughter. I don’t know if you will have “my” problem or not. Buy this one somewhere you can easily return if needed! The other bias I had against this product was removed by Sonicare when they did a redesign of the heads. The new heads pull on and off like the Oral-B’s always have. The old heads were large and expensive. Make sure you look at how the heads are removed and replaced before you buy a Sonicare and get the new pull off, push on style. The link on the left is to their unit at Amazon. For some reason they are hiding their price until you put it in your cart. Possibly because it is $118? You can find Sonicare electric brushes for less, but don’t get the old style screw on / off brush heads.
My suggestion is to buy today. Buy at Amazon, Costco, Walmart, Target, Walgreens, Rite-Aid or wherever you shop. Enjoy better oral hygiene immediately!
Yes, I do have an opinion about just about everything, but with regard to these product suggestions, I also happen to be a licensed dentist!
Paul