One thing I've been genetically blessed with is good teeth. Lousy eyes, but great pearly whites. So maybe that's why I was slow to catch on to the oral hygiene revolution overtaking this country.
Power toothbrushes that sell for over US$100. Whiteners. Mouthwashes that do double duty by preventing cavities or controlling tartar or gingivitis. Toothpaste in every conceivable flavor.
"People want teeth like Chiclets," said Katie Dawson, president of the American Dental Hygienists' Association and a clinical hygienist for 30 years.
PHOTO: NY TIMES
The makeover shows on television, she thinks, are a large part of the reason oral hygiene -- especially whitening -- has become so popular.
As dental care has started to move from being a necessary but boring chore to a way to be glamorous, more products are moving onto shelves.
A visit to the toothbrush aisle in the neighborhood drugstore has become a long, drawn-out affair. For consumers, confusion abounds about what to buy and whether, in fact, most of these items are essential.
"It's mind-boggling -- you need an advanced degree," said Carol Hall of Pelham, New York. "There's been a baffling product explosion. There's toothpaste with whitening, toothpaste with cavity prevention. And if you want to get me crazy, talk about toothbrushes. I stick with manual toothbrushes, and even that's confusing. I'll come home with what I think is a deal on toothbrushes, and then I open them and realize I bought extra-long medium, not extra-long soft."
No wonder consumers are bewildered. According to the Datamonitor Productscan Online database, which monitors the introduction of products, 112 new toothpastes were sold last year.
Figures from Intelligent Resources Inc show that Americans spent US$1 billion on toothpaste over the last 52 weeks, US$439.7 million on manual toothbrushes and US$194.6 million on power toothbrushes. The numbers include drugstores and supermarkets, but exclude Wal-Mart.
Kimberly Harms, consumer adviser for the American Dental Association and a dentist, knows that people are perplexed, saying, "We call it the dental aisle of confusion."
She suggests that patients ask their dentists during regular checkups about what is essential for oral hygiene and what is unnecessary. Do they have a lot of tartar buildup? Do they have sensitive teeth? Pick the products that address specific needs.
The first thing is to make sure the toothbrush can be held comfortably, whether it is manual or powered.
Then brush longer -- most dentists recommend two minutes -- and well enough to do the job.
"All you really need is a manual toothbrush, a bit of floss and some time," Harms said.
So why do I feel I am missing something by not buying the IntelliClean System from Philips Sonicare and Crest, which sells for around US$130? Introduced earlier this year, it is a toothbrush that pumps liquid toothpaste directly onto the bristles before and during brushing. It also has a signal every 30 seconds to move to another quadrant of the mouth, and a two-minute timer. It also, according to news releases, brushes three times faster than other power toothbrushes.
On the other hand, that much dental hygiene before bedtime might make it hard to get to sleep.
The fact is, although people may love their power toothbrushes, there is no evidence that they do a better job than manual ones.
Earlier this year, the Cochrane Collaboration, a nonprofit organization focusing on healthcare, released a review of 42 trials comparing the two types of toothbrushes.
"In most cases, manual toothbrushes remove as much plaque as their expensive electronic counterparts, and protect just as well against inflamed gums," the report said.
The only exceptions were electric toothbrushes with rotating-oscillating heads. These proved more effective.
Experts say power toothbrushes may be good for people who have arthritis or problems with manual dexterity, or for those who rush through their brushing.
"The results show that many people may be wasting money on toothbrushes they believe will clean their teeth better, when actually a much cheaper traditional brush would do the job just as well," the report states.
Harms has a mixed marriage -- she uses a manual toothbrush, while her husband swears by his expensive electric one.
No toothbrush, she said, can get between teeth, no matter what the advertisers say, and that is why flossing is necessary (and not just the day or two before a dental visit, which I've been known to do).
One area where there seems to be real innovation is flossing products. For example, Johnson & Johnson offers Reach Access flossers for adults and Wild Flossers for children. Wild Flossers are thin plastic dinosaur-shaped holders with a piece of floss in the animals' mouth. The disposable flosser is easier to hold and maneuver than regular floss.
And naturally, there is now an electric way to floss. Catering to an apparent need to clean teeth anywhere, anytime, Oral-B, owned by Gillette, has introduced Brush-Ups, which are "textured teeth wipes" that are slipped on a finger and run over the teeth.
One review of the product on Amazon.com noted that the reviewer and her nine-year-old both used them after a McDonald's meal.
"My son thought it was really great to see the food particles that came off his teeth," the reviewer wrote.
Harms said all this attention on dental care was positive because it encouraged people to take better care of their teeth.
But there can be too much of a good thing. For example, whiteners contain bleach and have to be used according to instructions, she said.
"Some people feel they can't get their teeth too white, so they use too much and it can damage the enamel," Harms said.
Dawson said people thought the whiteners could perform miracles.
"It won't work on coffee stains and other types of stains," she said. "Be sure before you use whiteners to have your teeth properly cleaned first."
Also, those who have tooth-colored crowns, caps or fillings should know that whiteners will not bleach them.
And care should be taken if a user has any history of teeth sensitivity. The product can get on the gum line and affect root surfaces, Dawson said.
So we have the electric toothbrush, flavored toothpaste, flosser, whiteners and mouthwash.
What we do not have yet is a singing toothbrush. Next year, Hasbro is going to introduce a toothbrush with a tiny microchip that plays songs from well-known recording stars.
Sure, there used to be toothbrushes that played music, but they were as the Victrola is to the iPod. This toothbrush will start playing when you press it against a tooth, transmitting sound waves through the bristles into the tooth and jawbone, then into the inner ear.
Each song will play two minutes -- the magic brushing time.
The musical toothbrush is a good step forward for dental care. But why not combine two modern obsessions? I think the next big revolution should be a toothbrush that also lets you e-mail.
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