A doctor has finally answered the long standing question: ‘should you brush your teeth before or after breakfast’.
People can be broadly placed into one of two categories - those who like to brush away the morning breath as soon as possible, and those who think it makes more sense to wait until after they’ve wolfed down a bowl of Coco-Pops in an attempt to brush away the evidence.
But - as ever in life - only one group can be right, so who is it? And who is actually doing more harm than good with their brushing action?
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Step up NHS doctor Dr Sooj - or @doctorsooj as he’s known on TikTok - who has the all important answers we crave.
In an upload to the video sharing platform, he said: “Why should you brush your teeth before breakfast?
"When you eat or drink something the pH of your mouth generally drops.
"This makes it more acidic. If you then immediately go and start brushing your teeth, you’re essentially brushing the acid into your teeth - you’re wearing the enamel down [and] if this happens over a long period of time, you then expose something called dentine, which is the layer underneath the enamel - this layer is anywhere between yellow and brown - and this means that your teeth can eventually become more yellow.”
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So there you go - take a bow you first-thing-in-the-morning brushers, you were right all along.
When asked if it was possible to get up, eat, wait half an hour and then brush, Dr Sooj said: “Yes, but that would take a lot of time in the morning, and many people are usually in a rush.
"Brushing before breakfast reduces the need to wait and protects the teeth before breakfast.”
Somewhat interestingly - if you’re interested in this kind of thing - the NHS doesn’t have specific guidelines on when you should brush your teeth other than ‘before bed’ and a vague ‘one other’ time.
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According to the NHS website: “Brush your teeth for about two minutes, last thing before you go to bed and on one other occasion every day.
“Your dentist or hygienist may give you more advice based on your own dental health and needs.
“Make sure you clean all the surfaces of all your teeth, which should take about two minutes.
“Remember to brush the inside surfaces, outside surfaces and the chewing surfaces of your teeth.”
Claire Reid