Most wouldn’t think a washroom can be dangerous for your smile. After all, that’s typically where you clean your teeth and gums! Truthfully, though, the dirty items in your bathroom are a health hazard. They can spread harmful germs to your grin in many cases. Therefore, you’ll want to wash them as much as possible. Luckily, your Broken Arrow dentist can give you the product details. To that end, here are four dirty items in your bathroom to regularly clean.
Your Bathroom Towels
True, people usually wash their hands after using the restroom. The issue is that they don’t do so thoroughly. As a result, a hand towel may stay damp and become a breeding ground for bacteria. This situation gets even worse if your towels are only washed once weekly.
Fortunately, you can protect your grin by washing your towels more often. Just toss them in your washer a few times throughout the week.
Your Cellphone
You likely touch your phone quite often. Unfortunately, your touchscreen isn’t as clean as you might think. Research shows that one in six cell phones are contaminated with fecal matter. As such, moving your hand from a phone to your face is risky for your teeth.
Thankfully, this situation is easily remedied. Simply use a disinfectant wipe to clean down your phone’s screen occasionally.
Your Toothbrush Holder
To be honest, your toothbrush holder could be the dirtiest thing in your house. Studies show that 27% of these containers test positive for coliform bacteria. That shouldn’t be a surprise, as toothpaste gunk, saliva, and even blood can drip into them over time. Once such things pool at the bottom, harmful substances form.
Again, though, this problem is fixable. To keep your holder clean, replace it every six to twelve months.
Your Toothbrush Itself
Since toothbrush holders get dirty, it’s only natural that toothbrushes do as well. The latter are damp objects that enter your mouth daily, contacting plaque, saliva, and food debris. As these things gather on the bristles, your toothbrush can become a bacterial breeding ground.
To avoid a filthy toothbrush, get a new one every three to four months. The ADA suggests this timetable to ensure you don’t use a brush with poor bristles. Still, you could also get a replacement sooner if you were recently sick. Before switching, submerging your toothbrush daily in hot water is a good idea as well.
Your teeth cleaning won’t be very helpful until you address the dirty items in your bathroom. So, clean the products above – the act will keep your smile healthy!
About the Practice
Berkshire Dental Group is based in Broken Arrow, OH. Led by Drs. Sprague and Beller, our practice emphasizes effective and trustworthy dentistry. We thus perform top-tier preventive, cosmetic, and restorative services, as well as emergency dental procedures. Our team is also a certified provider of both dental sedation and Invisalign® clear aligners. For more information or to book an appointment, reach them at their website or call them at (918)-250-9528.