Saturday 23 July 2011 @ 10:47 am

Everyone wants a bright white happy smile. And almost everyone brushes their teeth twice a day. Or at least they are supposed to, both adults and kids. But how many of us brush our teeth properly and for that special two-minute duration? Research shows that few adults actually brush for the minimum two minutes that are needed to get the job done right.

How do you properly brush your teeth? Should everyone do their own thing or is there a special way of brushing teeth properly?

Yes, there is an effective way of brushing teeth that would help get rid of all the plaque on all of the teeth surfaces in the mouth. Rubbing the toothbrush horizontally across your teeth in long strokes can hurt your gum line and still fail to do a proper job of cleaning. The goal is to get rid of plaque and avoid build up of layers that enable bacterial growth harmful to teeth. Let us see how.

Colgate Oral and Dental Health Resource Center and Dental Hygiene Information section on Crest.com both agree on the best method.

• Take two minutes. Less may not get the job done right.

• Brush gently using short, gentle strokes.

• Brush all tooth surfaces. Brushing should cover the inner and outer surfaces of both upper and lower teeth and chewing surfaces.

• Hold brush tilted at an angle to the gum line. A 45 degree angle is best for brushing the upper and lower gum lines both inside and out.

• Use a tooth sized-rolling motion to brush these surfaces.

• Use tip of the brush for inside of upper and lower teeth; it is easier.

• Long back and forth motion is best for brushing chewing surfaces.

• Don’t forget to brush your tongue.

More information

You can learn more about the proper way of brushing teeth from these online resources: