When I purchased my first electric toothbrush, Oral-B was pretty much the only option. Another strange contraption appeared not long thereafter, that used water jets to clean your teeth. I bought a WaterPik when it went on sale and it turns out it was a “water flosser” best used by people with implants, braces, crowns and veneers – not my case, so I returned it. I floss regularly with a waxed floss, and the water solution seems more complicated to me. However, you might want to give it a try.
Then Philips came out with their Sonicare product, but I never really considered it, because I was already invested in Braun’s. It turns out that Oral-B has even a page dedicated to the comparison, although in all fairness, their arguments are not very convincing (orb-vssb). Still, you will find YouTube videos, a six-month clinical comparison study (nih-6m), an 8-week evaluation (PDF), a SweetHome review (tswh-best) and most seem to recommend Oral-B for being cheaper to start with and having cheaper and easier to find replacement heads.
The one clear objective difference seems to be in noise, but that may also vary across product technologies for the same brand.
The conclusion (SweetHome) seems to be that electric toothbrushes are not all that much better.
One thing worth pointing out about electric toothbrushes is that they are not cheaper in the long run. Electric toothbrushes cost about 10 times as much as a manual toothbrushes, and you have to replace the brush heads at the same frequency (every 3 months), each for about the same cost as a manual brush. What you get for the higher cost is less friction in achieving good brushing habits, and, according to research, a significant reduction in plaque and gingivitis, even if that reduction may only come from having a brush that encourages good habits, like a full 2 minutes of brushing for each session. (..)
“Average folks brush 46 seconds. With timers people will go to at least the 2 minutes,” said Dr. Joan Gluch, an adjunct associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania Dental School. “Clinically, we see patients do better with powered toothbrushes.” Dr. Mark Wolff, DDS, Ph.D., a professor at NYU Dental School and chair of the Cariology and Comprehensive Care department, agreed: “It helps people that don’t brush well,” he said. “If you need the guidance, invest in the guidance.”
Currently, the lowest price for the Oral-B Pro 1000 is $40.97 – $20 MIR at Amazon. Costco has a double pack for around $90 (cstc-518760), which is not bad if you need two toothbrushes rather than one. Walmart has the “Oral-B Professional Deep Sweep Triaction 1000” for $49.97 (wlm-obds1k).
Note however that most reviewers note that manual brushing, apart from being significantly cheaper, may in fact be just as effective, as long as you manage to brush twice a day for two minutes.
- Place your toothbrush at a 45-degree angle to the gums.
- Gently move the brush back and forth in short (tooth-wide) strokes.
- Brush the outer surfaces, the inner surfaces, and the chewing surfaces of the teeth.
- To clean the inside surfaces of the front teeth, tilt the brush vertically and make several up-and-down strokes.
- Brush your tongue to remove bacteria and keep your breath fresh.
Researching this toothbrush convinced me that I do not really have to get the electrical one, the manual one I have is just fine. I have yet to order any, but if I did, I’d probably use Canada Post’s Flex Delivery, as I am seldom able to receive items during regular business hours.
I will update this article if and when I purchase.
Sources / More info: cp-flex, orb-pro, orb-1k5.5k, orb-vssb, cstc-518760, nih-6m, tswh-best, jodj-eff, ada-how2 (PDF), wlm-obds1k, cr-ttb, cr-prttb, ghi-ttb,
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thank you for commenting and please be assured that any and all comments are welcome, whether positive or negative, constructive or distructive.
We are using Disqus for commenting, but Blogger is not showing it so your comments may end up not being displayed - tell Google about it!