I just found out I’ve been doing this completely wrong my whole life…

r/

So, I just discovered that you don’t actually have to rinse your mouth with water after brushing your teeth because it washes away the fluoride. I’ve been doing it wrong for YEARS!!!😭

What’s something you learned way too late in life that made you question everything?

Comments

  1. Daniel_the_nomad Avatar

    But if you eat afterwards don’t you taste the toothpaste?

  2. FroggiJoy87 Avatar

    I rinse after brushing, but not after mouthwash with fluoride which follows the brushing.

  3. Rae-Swallows Avatar

    But how do you get the toothpaste residue out? What’s the rest of this process we’ve been doing wrong our entire life?

  4. Delicious_Device_87 Avatar

    Mouthwash is the ultimate in marketing, it’s not necessary if you’re cleaning your teeth already and yup, it washes away all the good work!

    If you’ve got other mouth hygiene issues, consult your dentist and any decent one won’t say mouthwash.

  5. HopelessCleric Avatar

    If they want me to not rinse my mouth out until I no longer taste the toothpaste, they better invent toothpaste that tastes like nothing and has no gross grainy or slimy texture either.

  6. Boring_Kiwi_6446 Avatar

    Embarrassingly I did question that at the school dentist as a child yet kept doing it. In my forties another dentist told me not to. That same dentist told me that in his first week at dental school the students were told to NOT tell patients that.

  7. Remote-Interview-521 Avatar

    A dentist told me these simple rules about brushing some time ago..

    Saliva is great for breaking down food – so do not brush for at least 30 mins after eating, to allow your mouth to do the work.

    Floss before brushing.

    Do not wet your toothbrush at all except to rinse. Totally unnecessary and just a habit people have.

    Do not rinse out after brushing (as stated already) to allow the toothpaste to be more effective.

    That’s it.

  8. WindThat8325 Avatar

    Same with mouthwash! Although don’t you think all that fluoride sticking around is not a good thing for your heart?

  9. Gaboguy00 Avatar

    Wait but, some toothpaste would remain in your mouth. And doesn’t the tube warn you not to consume any? That’d leave a lot of room for swallowing some after brushing.

  10. SpookyBeck Avatar

    Exactly this about a month ago.