Brushing your teeth is excellent for your oral and overall health, but have you ever considered what your daily brushing routine may be doing to the environment? Even the four minutes you spend brushing your teeth daily can make a significant impact. In fact, studies show that we use up about 10 gallons of water per day just when we’re brushing our teeth!

Fear not: we’ve put together five tips to reduce your environmental impact without drastically changing your oral healthcare routine.

1.  Turn Your Faucet Off While You Brush

Sometimes it just feels easier to let the faucet run while you brush, but even letting just a little water trickle down during your daily oral healthcare routine can be wasteful. The truth is, you only need a very little amount of water to brush your teeth. If you wet your brush properly before you start brushing your teeth and use just the right amount of toothpaste, you’ll find that you won’t have to keep wetting your brush throughout the process!

2. Rinse with a Cup

Going back to our first point, it’s best to fill up a small, reusable cup of water before or after you brush to limit the amount of water you use to rinse your mouth. There’s no need to waste water when all you need is enough to swish around your mouth!

3. Use Cold Water

Hot water uses up excess energy. If you can tolerate cold water during your brushing and rinsing process, opt for that instead!

4. Change Up Your Dental Products

We’ll be the first to admit it: dental products use up a lot of plastic that isn’t always recyclable. You can look into dental products made of eco-friendly materials, like bamboo and wood, for a guilt-free brushing routine. Better yet, an electric toothbrush is long-lasting and delivers a powerful clean so you don’t have to throw out an entire toothbrush every three months.

5. Decrease Your Water Pressure

You don’t need heavy-duty water pressure to brush your teeth. Keeping your faucet’s water pressure low will help you conserve water without having to really think twice about it. This is especially important for those who are prone to leaving their faucets running while they brush their teeth.

Ready for an eco-friendly dental routine? Try out these five tips and take note of how much water you save over time! We look forward to seeing you soon at Atlantic Dental Partners!

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