Unlock a new oral cleaning tool - interdental brush

• Hidden blind spots in oral hygiene

In daily life, most people think that as long as they brush their teeth carefully every day, they can keep their mouth clean and healthy. But in fact, this is a common misunderstanding. Although brushing teeth is the basic part of oral hygiene, it cannot completely cover every corner of the entire mouth.

If you look closely at our teeth, you will find that they are closely arranged, and the gaps between teeth are like forgotten little corners. The bristles of ordinary toothbrushes are relatively coarse, and it is difficult to penetrate these narrow gaps. Even if we use the Bass brushing method, we can only clean about 70% of the tooth surface, and the remaining 30% of dental plaque remains in the gaps between teeth, becoming a potential threat to oral health.

Imagine that after every meal, food residues "set up camp" in the gaps between teeth, but because they are difficult to reach with a toothbrush, they stay there for a long time. Over time, bacteria will multiply and decompose food residues, producing acidic substances, which will gradually corrode teeth and cause tooth decay. At first, it may be just a small cavity that people don't notice, but as the cavity continues to expand, the tooth will begin to hurt, affecting normal chewing and life.

Not only that, improper cleaning of the gaps between teeth can also cause a series of periodontal problems. Plaque accumulates in the gaps between teeth for a long time and gradually calcifies to form tartar. Tartar will be like a hard "small stone", tightly attached to the surface of the teeth and the edge of the gums, constantly irritating the gums, causing redness, swelling and bleeding of the gums. If not treated in time, the inflammation will further develop, causing periodontitis, causing gum atrophy and alveolar bone absorption, and may eventually lead to loose teeth and falling off. This is not alarmist. Many people start to lose their teeth at a young age, and a large part of the reason is that they ignore the cleaning of the gaps between teeth.

• What is an interdental brush?

Faced with the problem of cleaning between teeth, inter-dental brushes came into being and became a powerful assistant in protecting oral health. Interdental toothpicks, also known as interdental brushes and gap brushes, are similar to ordinary toothbrushes in structure, mainly consisting of a brush head, a brush handle and bristles.

The brush head of the interdental brush is extremely exquisitely designed. It is small and exquisite, with a unique cone shape, which can easily penetrate into the narrow gaps between teeth. Compared with the larger brush heads of ordinary toothbrushes, the brush heads of interdental brushes can accurately reach the deep gaps between teeth, leaving no hygiene blind spots. Its bristles are usually harder, and this design is to better deal with stubborn food residues and dental plaque in the gaps between teeth. When the bristles shuttle back and forth between teeth, they can effectively remove these dirt and ensure the cleanliness of the gaps between teeth. However, too hard bristles may also cause certain irritation to the gums, so when choosing an interdental brush, pay special attention to the hardness of the bristles and choose a product that suits your oral condition.

The design of the interdental brush handle also takes into full consideration the convenience and comfort of use. The length and thickness of the brush handle are moderate, which is convenient for us to hold and can be flexibly operated when cleaning teeth. Some inter-dental brush handles also adopt ergonomic design, which fits the curve of the hand, making us more labor-saving and reducing hand fatigue during use.

In order to meet the needs of different groups of people, interdental brushes come in a variety of sizes and shapes. In terms of size, there are superfine, fine, medium and coarse types. For people with closely spaced teeth and small gaps between teeth, you can choose superfine or fine interdental brushes, which can easily pass through narrow gaps between teeth for detailed cleaning; while for people with larger gaps between teeth, such as the elderly, patients with periodontal disease or patients with dental implants, you can choose medium or coarse interdental brushes to ensure a good cleaning effect.

In terms of shape, in addition to the common round brush heads, there are also special shaped brush heads such as conical and trapezoidal. Conical brush heads are suitable for gradually narrowing interdental spaces, and can better adapt to the shape of the interdental spaces and provide in-depth cleaning; trapezoidal brush heads are suitable for cleaning irregular interdental spaces, and can fully cover the interdental surface and improve cleaning efficiency. In addition, some interdental brushes have L-shaped or I-shaped heads. The I-shaped one is suitable for cleaning the interdental spaces between the front teeth, while the L-shaped one is more suitable for cleaning the interdental spaces between the back teeth. Brush heads of different shapes provide us with more personalized cleaning options.

• The Power of Interdental Brushes

Although interdental brushes may look small, they have a powerful effect that cannot be underestimated. They can be called the "invisible guardian" of oral hygiene.

Its primary function is to effectively remove food residues and dental plaque between teeth. After we eat, various food residues will quietly hide in the teeth. If these residues are not cleaned in time, they will become a "hotbed" for bacteria to grow. The interdental brush, with its small brush head and hard bristles, can easily penetrate deep into the teeth and completely remove the food residues hidden in the corners. At the same time, it can also effectively brush off the dental plaque attached to the surface of the teeth, reduce the growth of bacteria from the root, and greatly reduce the risk of oral diseases.

Interdental brushes play a key role in preventing oral diseases. Dental caries is a common oral disease, mainly caused by bacteria decomposing food residues to produce acidic substances, which corrode teeth. Interdental brushes can promptly remove food residues and bacteria in the gaps between teeth, keep the surface of teeth clean, and prevent acidic substances from being produced, thus effectively preventing the occurrence of dental caries.

Periodontitis is also a disease that seriously endangers oral health. It is usually caused by long-term irritation of the gums by dental plaque and tartar. Interdental brushes can help us clean the gaps between teeth regularly, prevent plaque from accumulating and calcifying in the gaps between teeth to form tartar, reduce irritation to the gums, and thus prevent the occurrence of periodontitis. For people who already have periodontitis, using interdental brushes can also help control the development of inflammation and promote the recovery of periodontal tissues.

For some special groups of people, interdental brushes are indispensable oral cleaning tools. Due to physiological gum atrophy, the gaps between teeth of the elderly tend to become larger, and ordinary toothbrushes and dental floss can hardly meet their cleaning needs. Interdental brushes can be selected according to the size of the gaps between teeth of the elderly, deeply clean the gaps between teeth, help them keep their mouths clean, prevent oral diseases, and improve the quality of life in their later years.

Patients with periodontal disease have alveolar bone absorption, gum recession, exposed tooth roots, and increased gaps between teeth, making it more difficult to clean between teeth. Interdental brushes can accurately clean dental plaque and food debris between the teeth of these patients, effectively controlling the development of periodontal disease and alleviating the pain of patients.

Patients with dental implants need to pay special attention to the cleaning around the implants to prevent peri-implantitis. Interdental brushes can clean the adjacent surfaces of the implants, remove food debris and bacteria, create a clean oral environment for the implants, and improve the success rate and service life of dental implants.

After orthodontic patients wear braces, the tooth surface becomes more complicated and food residues are more likely to remain. Interdental brushes can easily bypass braces, clean the gaps between teeth and braces, keep teeth clean, avoid tooth demineralization, caries and other problems caused by food residues, and make the orthodontic process smoother.

• Comparison with other oral cleaning tools

In the "tool family" for oral cleaning, interdental brushes have unique advantages compared to other common tools such as dental floss and water flossers. At the same time, they can also cooperate with them to safeguard oral health.

Compared with dental floss, interdental brushes are better at cleaning larger gaps between teeth. Dental floss is fine and is mainly suitable for narrow gaps between teeth. When the gaps between teeth are large, it is difficult for dental floss to completely remove food debris and dental plaque in the gaps between teeth, and it is easy to miss some dirt. Interdental brushes are specially designed for gaps between teeth of various sizes, especially for larger gaps between teeth. Its brush head and bristles can fully play their role, penetrate deep into the gaps, and completely remove dirt.

In terms of ease of use, interdental brushes also have certain advantages. Using dental floss requires certain skills. For first-time users or people with poor hand flexibility, it may take some time to master the correct method of use. If it is not used properly, it may also damage the gums. The use of interdental brushes is relatively simple. You only need to gently insert the brush head into the gap between teeth and move it back and forth, just like using an ordinary toothbrush. It is easy to use and even the elderly and children can use it easily.

Compared with water flossers, interdental brushes have more advantages in cleaning dental plaque. Water flossers use high-pressure water flow to clean the oral cavity, which can effectively remove food debris from the surface of teeth and between teeth, and can also massage the gums to a certain extent. However, the water flow has a relatively limited effect on the cleaning of dental plaque attached to the surface of teeth. The bristles of interdental brushes can directly contact the surface of teeth, and through physical friction, they can more effectively remove dental plaque and prevent the occurrence of oral diseases from the root.

Although interdental brushes have many advantages, they cannot completely replace other oral cleaning tools. Toothbrushes are the main tool for cleaning the surface of teeth. They can remove food debris and plaque on the surface of teeth and keep teeth basically clean. Interdental brushes focus on cleaning the gaps between teeth. In conjunction with toothbrushes, they can achieve all-round cleaning of teeth. Dental floss has a unique effect in cleaning tiny gaps between teeth and dirt deep in the gingival sulcus. When used with interdental brushes, it can further improve the effect of cleaning the gaps between teeth. Oral irrigators can be used as a supplement to daily oral cleaning. After meals or when it is inconvenient to brush your teeth, using an oral irrigator can quickly remove food debris from the mouth and keep your breath fresh.