Does Not Rinsing Toothpaste After Brushing Make Your Teeth Whiter?
Does Not Rinsing Toothpaste After Brushing Make Your Teeth Whiter?
Many Winter Park dentist patients want whiter teeth and easy steps to integrate into their daily routine. Using toothpaste with active whitening agents (like hydrogen peroxide) and not rinsing after can yield better results. Interested in how it works or why it isn’t gross? Keep reading below to understand why!
Why is it better to spit and not rinse?
Brushing your teeth with toothpaste is a crucial step in your daily routine, as it removes plaque and food debris from your mouth, which can cause tooth decay. In its most basic form, toothpaste is a gentle abrasive that works with the mechanical action of your toothbrush. However, modern toothpaste is a marvel and generally contains ingredients to help protect healthy teeth or prevent future problems, providing you with the reassurance and confidence that your dental health is in good hands.
Virtually all additional ingredients in toothpaste are more effective given more time in contact with your teeth and gums. Therefore, to get the most out of your toothpaste, dentists recommend spitting out your toothpaste after brushing but not rinsing immediately after. This will maximize the time those ingredients like fluoride, sensitivity treatment, and teeth whitening have to act in your mouth.
When it comes to toothpaste with active whitening (with hydrogen peroxide), patience is key. Letting the remaining thin film of toothpaste reside after your brushing will help keep your whitening active for a few more important minutes. Whitening agents take time to work, and the 2 minutes of brushing is not as effective as giving a few extra minutes without rinsing. For toothpaste that does have hydrogen peroxide (like Colgate Optic White), it can have a mild taste which patients prefer to rinse out. If that is the case, you can definitely do a rinse after waiting about 10 minutes for all the toothpaste ingredients to do their jobs!
It is also important to note that many “whitening” toothpastes are more about stain removal and polishing and may not have any “active” whitening ingredients like hydrogen peroxide. In those cases, leaving your toothpaste without rinsing may have benefits for the fluoride and the sensitivity treatments, however the whitening will not increase effectiveness since there is no “active” whitening agents.
What daily routine does my Winter Park dentist recommend?
If you don’t have any unique dental conditions, the general recommendation is to spit out your toothpaste and not rinse afterward.
By not rinsing away the toothpaste, you let ingredients such as fluoride, potassium nitrate, and others work their magic in your mouth.
A typical twice-a-day dental care routine could look like this:
Floss between all your teeth
Rinse your mouth (with water or mouthwash)
Brush all surfaces of your teeth for a full 2 minutes
Spit (but don't rinse) out the toothpaste
Wipe your beautiful face
Smile at yourself in the mirror
This might seem trivial in your daily routine, but we think it helps patients in their long-term dental care! After all, don't you want all the benefits of your toothpaste and effort from the full 2 minutes of brushing?
What about rinsing away all the yucky stuff?
Does not rinsing after brushing feel gross? It might take some time, but it shouldn't feel that way! If you regularly find food debris is dislodged or retained while you are brushing, make sure you are:
Flossing before brushing: Removing anything stuck between your teeth not only makes the toothbrush bristles more effective but also lets the toothpaste work in all the smaller spaces between your teeth
Rinse your mouth with water after flossing but before brushing.
So, when can I rinse my mouth?
We find that most patients feel comfortable with the following routine:
Flossing your teeth
Rinse / 'swish' your mouth with water to remove any loose food debris
Brushing all surfaces of your teeth (top/bottom, front, back, and the sides) for a full 2 minutes
Spitting out the toothpaste
Smiling at yourself in the mirror!
With this routine, you are rinsing before brushing but not afterward. But, for those who must rinse after brushing, we recommend waiting 10 minutes. This will give sufficient time to get the benefits from ingredients like:
Fluoride or Hydroxyapatite to re-mineralize your enamel and protect your teeth
Potassium nitrate or Stannous fluoride to help treat tooth sensitivity
Hydrogen peroxide for some whitening toothpaste
Not everyone uses mouthwash, but if your dentist has recommended it or you prefer the extra protection of mouthwash, there are certainly ways to work it into the routine.
If you primarily like using mouthwash to keep your mouth fresh and prevent bad breath, it might be just as effective for you to use mouthwash at different times of the day, perhaps only after lunch or just before brushing. This way, you won't have to rinse after brushing at all.
However, if your mouthwash is primarily for extra protection/prevention of tooth decay, consider just using the mouthwash directly before brushing (effectively acting as your rinse after flossing). Another alternative (as mentioned above) would be to wait for the recommended 10 minutes after brushing to use the mouthwash.
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