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Learn the real difference between manual and electric toothbrushes.

This question warrants a thorough response, but we don’t want to keep you waiting for the most important part. Establishing and following proper habits – such as brushing for two minutes twice daily with a soft-bristled toothbrush, replacing the head every three months and visiting your dentist twice a year – are fundamental to obtaining and maintaining good oral hygiene. Opting for the brush that you’ll best adhere to those practices is likely your best choice. We know it can be hard to come to this understanding, given all the hype surrounding different brands over the years, but we want to make sure everyone has access to the kind of knowledge that our first dentist provided us with. So in order to shed light on this vital subject, we’re answering some of the most frequently asked questions about it!

manual or electric toothbrush, which is better

How do you get a better clean?

The most important answer to this question is a healthy brushing routine. Although we look into it in depth elsewhere on our site, following this routine is greatly beneficial. You can’t bypass it with short cuts or the features of an electric toothbrush. To achieve better cleaning, you need to brush gently for 2 minutes regularly – both before going to bed and when you wake up – as well as changing your toothbrush head every 3 months and visiting the dentist every 6 months. So, what kind of brush will give you the best results? It is likely the one that helps you follow those habits!

What is the point of designing an electric brush?

Dentists advise the use of electric toothbrushes as most of us don’t adhere to good oral hygiene. Unfortunately, brushing usually lasts a minute or less, 75% of us fail to change brush heads as recommended, 40% skip regular check-ups, and half don’t even brush twice daily. Quip was created to help make it simpler to follow these basic yet essential routines! It would be useless to have a feature that could potentially offer an improved clean if it’s misused and left in disrepair – or if not used regularly.

How about “the studies”?

It’s not that we’ll tell you to disregard studies, but rather to think carefully about them! Considering the tremendous impact that following good basic dental habits (as mentioned above) will have on your oral health, our primary advice is to think big, not small! But if you are looking to dig in and understand more about potential marginal gains of certain electric toothbrush features, here are some things to look out for:

You should do your homework as sponsorship can be masked by a third-party company funded by the oral care brand.

If they are run in unrealistic environments, such as a lab under ideal conditions, or if they do not take into account things like placebo effects, they can fail. In any case, if you were a manual brusher and were given an electric brush for the first time, would you suddenly brush worse? (More on that below!) So pay attention to the study’s setup.

In oral care research, there are usually two studies that counter one another! In the same way that big brands like to support their own claims, they also want to play down the claims of their rivals, so every “this brush is better than that brush” study is frequently followed by one “this brush is not better than that”. The best way to get a balanced perspective is to find the opposite study to the one you’re reading.

Studies typically aim to verify a given, specific point, not necessarily solve a problem. For example, “Does ‘10,000 extra hertz’ of power make a 1% difference in cleaning?” This can distract from the actions which have real implications on oral health. Therefore, instead of immediately taking away something from the study you are reading, establish what it would mean for your personal hygiene habits and technique first.

Electricity appeals to dentists for a number of reasons.

There are many reasons, but two of the most common ones stand out. Clever marketing helps – larger companies can afford to give away free brushes to professionals, whose expertise and honesty help promote them to patients. Then there’s the placebo effect. We might not take it seriously, but it’s true that a two-minute timer and vibrating bristles can energize us and get us interested in our brushing routine. The problem is that this enthusiasm can eventually fade away and lead to even poorer habits. That’s something we’ll look into further soon!

How about rotating / ultrasonic?

First of all, and we apologize for repeating ourselves, but these brushes do not have any problems! If you use them correctly, they will clean as well as anything! It is important to remember, however, that good habits drive health, and your brush can have both positive and negative impacts on your oral care habits! The following are some negative impacts of premium brushes:

Routine slackens

Unnecessary extras increase prices (which brands love!), but also add bulk and hassle. Brushing twice daily is a must for dental hygiene, but when your toothbrush weighs a considerable amount and you have to store it in the kitchen because of its enormous charging cable, it’s all too tempting to skip that second brush! Furthermore, our reliance on electric toothbrushes can make us forget about manual brushing – even though it’s just as effective – when batteries run out due to the abundance of modes, wireless charging and 50,000 rpm motor.

Neglecting maintenance

If you don’t want to get into the business of finding the best deals on off-brand brush heads, then electric brush heads can be costly! Some brushes go up to $30 per head. Even if bristles aren’t faded or we don’t have an LED warning light, it’s easy to forget about replacing our brush head when it wears out – especially given the price tag.

Techniques that are worsening

Electrics may start out as a good way to focus and brush better, but our gullibility towards marketing buzzwords like “ultrasonic” and “rotations per minute” can make us think that power-brushing is sufficient for great hygiene. This leads us back to the same poor habits, assuming the brush will do all the work with minimal effort from us. To make matters worse, this misconception increases the temptation to brush aggressively which can lead to irreversible gum damage. This issue is starting to gain more recognition, as demonstrated by growing coverage of it in reports.

Is there a reason why brands ignore habits?

Since fixing bad habits doesn’t cost anything, they do not drive higher profits from frequent upgrades the way adding new gimmicks do! This year it’s ultra whitening modes, last year it was supersonic speed, last year it was angled bristles. Every year we get further from what really matters, even though there’s a new reason to “upgrade” 🙁

Why quip instead of a manual?

Having gone through all of this, we’re sure you can understand why this is often the final question posed. But let’s be crystal clear: if you brush for two minutes twice a day with proper technique and switch up your brush head every three months, plus visit the dentist every six months without any reminders, then you’re totally killing it in the oral care game! We understand that sticking to such routines can be difficult for most of us; that’s why we created quip. Our platform helps you maintain these essential habits with an enjoyable design, honest advice and affordable products. Plus, unlike other electric toothbrushes, we’ll stay by your side and make sure everything’s running smoothly and that your brushing remains enjoyable. How? With our blog posts, monthly newsletters, daily social media updates and quarterly refill cards!

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