How Often Should You Brush Your Tongue?
You should brush your tongue at least twice per day, ideally once in the morning when you wake up and at night before bed. While your toothbrush is a fine tool for brushing your tongue, you can also clean it with a tongue scraper.
Why It’s Important to Clean Your Tongue
Even if you thoroughly brush your teeth and rinse with mouthwash, you will still leave food particles and bacteria on your tongue. Unlike teeth, your tongue has a very rough surface full of troughs, peaks, and crannies perfect for bacteria to hide and multiply. Most people are surprised to learn that their tongue actually has more bacteria than their teeth.
These bacteria can not only linger and cause bad breath but can also transfer onto teeth and cause cavities, plaque, and decay. It’s vital to brush or clean your tongue daily to get rid of the food particles and bacteria.
Tools for Cleaning Your Tongue
Brushing or cleaning the tongue is about removing the food and bacteria from the front and back. The best ways to do this are by using a toothbrush or a tongue scraper.
Many toothbrush heads come with short bristles on one side that are designed for tongue cleaning. Place a small amount of toothpaste on your brush and place it on your tongue. Begin at the back and move forward with an up and down, gentle scrubbing motion.
It’s important to note that toothbrushes were designed to clean teeth and therefore might not be as effective at cleaning tongues. That’s why another great option is a tongue scraper. They are metal or plastic tools with a curved “U” shape on one end and pull tabs or a handle on the other. To use a scraper, place the curved end on the back of your tongue and pull it forward. Rinse it off and repeat the motion two or three times.
How Often Should You Clean Your Tongue?
Cleaning your tongue should be part of your daily oral care routine. Brush or scrape your tongue at least twice per day. You can clean it more if you find your mouth gets dry or has a bad taste in the middle of the day. You should also clean your tongue more often if you notice it has a white, coated buildup.
Oral Hygiene from Terra & Co.
Terra & Co. makes it easy for you to add brushing or cleaning your tongue to your daily oral hygiene routine. An eco-friendly tongue scraper or bamboo toothbrush from our collection is the simple solution for both your mouth and our planet. We also offer a range of other sustainable and effective oral care solutions including our Oil Pulling with MCT Oil and our Organic Charcoal Toothpaste. Put your mouth and our planet first with Terra & Co.
