Thursday, February 21, 2008

How Do You Clean Your Toothbrush?

by Ruth Walby

If you're like most people you just rinse your toothbrush under the running water, shake it off, store it either out in the open on the countertop or inside the medicine cabinet and feel you've done a good job of cleaning it. This is the most commonly used way to attempt to clean a toothbrush. There are a number of other home remedies you can try to clean and sanitize your brush although none of these methods will thoroughly rid them of their disease causing germs and bacteria.
Here are a few of these home remedies I've found for cleaning your toothbrush and the results of trying them.
· REMEDY--Use at least 70% strength rubbing alcohol to water. Change the solution every 3-4 days.

· RESULT-Must have 1 cup per brush sitting somewhere on your cabinet or sink at all times (cross your fingers one of the kids or hubby doesn't knock it over). When ready to use, the brush must be thoroughly rinsed under hot water for several minutes or it will taste of the alcohol. This will be something you (Mom) will end up doing every morning because the kids "just can't seem to do it right". Also the solution must be changed on schedule.
· REMEDY-Use hydrogen peroxide to soak your toothbrush. Change the solution every 3-4 days.
· RESULT-Once again you have a 1-cup and brush per person problem sitting on your cabinet. (Like, who has this much room in their bathroom?) You must really, really, rinse the brush well for several minutes when using this stuff. It has a horrible taste and smell. And just think of all the water running down your drain rinsing these solutions off your brushes. That equals higher water bills and no one needs that!
· REMEDY-Rinse your toothbrush in water and antibacterial liquid soap. Be sure to "scrub" the bristles with your finger or thumb until you think they are clean. Rinse well and use.
· RESULT-Ever had your mouth washed out with soap when you were a kid? Well, that memory will come rushing back if you fail to get all the soap out of the bristles, trust me. Also, "scrubbing" with your finger produces a mass of splatters all over the countertop and walls. Have a kid (or husband) do this and you'll have to spend at least 15 minutes wiping down surrounding surfaces each time they brush. Who has that kind of extra time?
· REMEDY-Put your toothbrush in the dishwasher or the washing machine.
· RESULT-I don't know you feel but the thought of bits of teeny, tiny food particles from my pots and pans and other peoples dirty dishes getting slung into the bristles of my toothbrush just about makes me sick. Worse yet, the thought of my toothbrush swimming around with particles from dirty underpants and socks in the washing machine really makes me want to gag! Dirty is dirty and things can get just so clean without some extra help! I'm not putting my clean underwear in my mouth because I don't think they ever get "brand-new clean" once used so why would my toothbrush fair any better?
The most through and satisfactory way I've found to clean my toothbrushes is too steam-clean them with one of the new products now out on the market. They generate a continuous burst of steam that wipes out more than 99.9999% of all germs on your brush and stores them safely away until ready to be used the next time. No muss, no fuss! Just nice clean, sanitized, germ and bacteria free toothbrushes.

Ruth Walby is an author and a webmistress who has published numerous online articles on health and wellness, nutrition and diabetes. Her views are also respected on a variety of topics related to parenting, relationships and weight loss. Being a wife, mother and grandmother she understands how you feel about caring for and protecting you family because she has felt the same way too. She urges you to visit the following sites to learn about the solutions she has found to many of these problems.
http://www.squidoo.com/toothbrush-sanitizers1
OR
http://www.usfreeads.com/1057849-cls.html
OR
http://basic2proinfo.com/index.php?search=Health%20and%20Wellness

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