Poll: Brush teeth before or after eating breakfast?

[gyroc1]

Ok, this is a weird common sense question. Are you supposed to eat before brushing your teeth in the morning or brush your teeth before eating breakfast?
I've been raised to always brushed my teeth before eating. I have a friend whose family eats before brushing, but my dentist recently said that I should eat before brushing. I can see why this makes sense because your teeth get dirty when you eat so it would make sense to brush after eating to destroy all the plaque in one go. But a quick google search suggests that he is wrong because eating certain foods weakens the enamel and makes brushing actually harm your teeth.
Maybe I'm asking this to see people's habits.

 

[TheYellowCellPhone]

Doesn't seem logical in my book.

If I have to jump into a pile of mud, I don't take a shower before I'm muddy, I take a show afterwards. So, doesn't make sense to clean your teeth if you're going to make them dirty a few minutes later.

 

[Scarim Coral]

I brush my teeth after I had breakfast however I do know someone who does it before breakfast.

I find it weird doing it before breakfast seeing how tooth paste are usually minty flavour. What I'm getting at is the minty taste stay behind for a for minute after brushing so doing it before breakfast means you still get the minty taste and feel when you're eating! (How does that work if you're drinking orange?)

Yes I know there are non minty flavour tooth paste but I still find it weird.

 

[DoPo]

I've read that you have to do it before, as OP pointed out, but by not being a dentist I don't know. I brush after, however - it cleans up everything.


Erm, or I would brush after, if I had breakfast more often. I usually go straight for lunch or at least a late breakfast.

 

[requisitename]

My dentist says that if you're going to do it after, do it quite a bit after due to the softening of enamel caused by the acids in your food and drinks. Both my sisters go to different dentists from me and one another (and their kids go to yet *another* one) and this is the one thing they all seem to agree on!

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

I'm bad for brushing my teeth in the morning. I should do it more often because I can't actually remember the order I do it in <.<

Isn't it the overnight plaque what you're trying to get rid of?

 

[Ieyke]

There's no good answer. Orange juice isn't something you can happily drink after brushing, and brushing after drinking orange juice is bad for your teeth.

 

[Cowabungaa]

If I have to jump into a pile of mud, I don't take a shower before I'm muddy, I take a show afterwards. So, doesn't make sense to clean your teeth if you're going to make them dirty a few minutes later.

Jup, that's the most sensible answer.

Besides, why on Earth do I want my breakfast to taste like mint? And why would I want to spoil my fresh breath so quickly?

There's no good answer. Orange juice isn't something you can happily drink after brushing, and brushing after drinking orange juice is bad for your teeth.

Only if you do it too soon.

Besides, save orange juice for the afternoons. Milk is where it's at.

 

[Azure-Supernova]

I brush my teeth twice a day: once as soon as I get up and right before I go to bed.

The minty taste is usually gone by the time I eat in the morning, then I just use mouthwash after I eat breakfast. My dentist seems pretty happy with my routine.

 

[Jonluw]

I recently started brushing my teeth before breakfast, after hearing that it was the better option.

 

[Gizmo]

Always after, I don't want the taste of toothpaste in my food.

 

[Sexual Harassment Panda]

Both.

I'm fairly keen to get rid of the taste in my mouth when I wake up. I brush and/or mouthwash before I leave the house too...for society.

 

[Maxtro]

Assuming you brushed your teeth right before you went to bed and had nothing to eat after; what exactly are you brushing off, if you brush your teeth before you have breakfast?

It's literally the same thing as washing your clothes, putting them away. Then washing them again before you wear them.

 

[Kae]

I do it before and after, before because it's the very first thing I do when I wake up (the second is take a shower) and after because otherwise I'd have bad breath when going out and that's not nice at all, it just seems like the logical thing for me to do, because what if I ate a spider or something like that while I was asleep [small](eating spiders is a pretty common thing that happens when you are asleep, I don't want to alarm you but you've probably have done it already more than a couple of times)[/small], I'd definitely would prefer cleaning my mouth of that stuff before eating anything else.

 

[crudus]

I don't eat breakfast. I do occasionally brush my teeth in the morning after my shower though.

But a quick google search suggests that he is wrong because eating certain foods weakens the enamel and makes brushing actually harm your teeth.

This is true actually. Some foods have various acids that weakens the enamel of your teeth. Brushing your teeth actually removes this weakened enamel. Imagine it like soaking your dishes before washing them vs trying to wash them before soaking.

Doesn't seem logical in my book.

If I have to jump into a pile of mud, I don't take a shower before I'm muddy, I take a show afterwards. So, doesn't make sense to clean your teeth if you're going to make them dirty a few minutes later.

The analogy doesn't quite fit the shower doesn't melt away the skin exposed to mud whereas brushing your teeth grinds away enamel weakened by eating (certain) food.

Assuming you brushed your teeth right before you went to bed and had nothing to eat after; what exactly are you brushing off, if you brush your teeth before you have breakfast?

Saliva does many things in your mouth: It is the first step to digesting food, it moistens foods making them easier to swallow, it makes it so you can taste food, and it cleans your mouth. The mouth cleaning isn't just from various food particles, but it is also for various bacteria. At night when you are sleeping, your saliva production slows (if not stops). This allows bacteria to grow is your mouth, which is what causes your bad breath in the morning. So it isn't like washing your clothes before and after your wear them. It is more like washing your clothes, letting mold grow on them, then washing them before you wear them again.

There's no good answer. Orange juice isn't something you can happily drink after brushing, and brushing after drinking orange juice is bad for your teeth.

Third option: Mainline it.

 

[Artina89]

I always brush my teeth after I have eaten. It's how I have always done it, and I don't my cereal and cup of tea to taste like mint.

 

[Colour Scientist]

I brush my teeth immediately after I get up, before breakfast. I usually don't eat for a while after I wake up though.