Is the electric toothbrush all hype?

The NZ Herald surveyed a group of independent dentists and found that many dentists are uncomfortable with their profession’s relationship with some dental products and their marketing companies.

One product endorsement that seemed to bother the dentists the most is in the area of electronic toothbrushes.

According to the Herald, dentists were split 50-50 about whether an electric toothbrush gave a better clean. The dentists who support manual toothbrushes felt that brushing is about how well someone brushes — not the toothpaste or toothbrush used.

In other words, any type of toothbrush is only as good as the person who is using it.  Overall, many dentists felt there wasn’t a bigger advantage to using one type of toothbrush over another.

So why endorse the more expensive electric toothbrush?

Some dentists feel product endorsements arise from the close relationships between dental associations and dental product manufacturers.  In the Herald survey, several dentists broke ranks with the professional associations – one of which receives sponsorship from Oral-B – to speak out and say that the clean provided by an electric toothbrush is no better than a manual toothbrush.

Both the New Zealand Dental Association and the New Zealand Dental Therapists Association declined to comment on the survey.

What do you say?  What type of toothbrush do you advise your patients to use?

For more on this story read: Electric brush: tooth or fiction