Oral Hygiene

Brushing Your Teeth While You’re Sick

I often see it asked around the internet (and even hear some of my friends or others asking) if they should continue to brush their teeth while they’re sick. At first, this kind of seems like a weird question to ask that has an obvious answer. But let me explain what they mean to say.

I’ve long been an advocate for tossing out your toothbrush once you get sick. It makes sense to rid yourself of a tool that will carry dormant bacteria and viruses that once compromised your immune system, yet many people don’t seem to know that this is a thing. Now, let’s assume that most people asking if they should continue to brush their teeth while sick know this information (which is likely).

Now it’s easy to understand why they may be asking this, simply because they don’t want infect their toothbrush in the first place while they’re sick.

The problem with this, though, is that while your immune system has become compromised by something else, it’s more likely for your oral health to be under attack as well while sick. So skipping your regular dental regimen is a really bad idea as you want to keep all of that (and your other hygiene) top notch whilst still sick. The more you can clean up and rid your body of unwanted germs, the better off you’ll be (as well as have a better chance of getting rid of the illness sooner than later).

So, my suggestion on this matter is to have a cheap (and I mean like $.50 or $1.00) toothbrush handy at all times in case you get sick. Once it happens, well, all you have to do is bust out your cheap brush and use it for the duration of your illness. I generally advise to keep using it a day or two after you think you’ve healed completely as there may still be residing germs in your body that don’t affect you nearly as much.

This is an extremely inexpensive way to avoid future contamination while also still keeping up with your dental care routine during sickness. You don’t want to compromise your oral health when your body is already under attack by other pathogens, right? There’s no sense in avoiding brushing your teeth in order to avoid future contamination. All it takes is a back up brush that won’t cost you nearly as much as a nice toothbrush would. Upon getting better, you can just go back to using your old toothbrush until it’s time to get a new one with better bristles.