Man sparks debate over whether you should brush your teeth with warm water
People are flooding to social media in debate after a TikToker questioned whether you should brush your teeth in 'hot' or cold water.
As if there's not enough to worry about already in life, we should now apparently be concerned about what temperature of water we're brushing our teeth with.
A TikToker has questioned whether we should use hot or cold water to scrub our gnashers clean and it's left people divided.
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TikToker Justin - who goes by the username @high.center.of.gravity - took to the platform on Wednesday (15 November) with a conundrum.
He said: "My sister-in-law just told me that she brushes her teeth with hot water and so I tried it this afternoon and it was surprisingly pleasant.
"I'm now wondering if this is a life hack that everyone has been doing this entire time without telling me while I'm over here brushing my teeth with cold water?"
People have flocked to the comments section to weigh in on whether brushing your teeth with hot or cold water is normal.
One user wrote: "If I accidentally put warm water on my toothbrush, I could actually cry."
"I thought we all used hot water???" another commented.
A third said: "Warm for sure. Softens the bristles."
And a fourth wrote: "Wow I have been using cold water for 30+ years."
However, normal or not, which one is actually better for your teeth and overall health?
Thankfully, a dentist has cleared things up.
According to Dana R Walters, most people 'tend to use cold water on their brushes' and it's 'out of habit'.
The dentist's website explains: "Many individuals feel the coolness is refreshing, but there are no benefits that come from using it for oral hygiene purposes.
"It is a common belief that warm water loosens dirt and gets things cleaner. For instance, you may use warm water to remove grease from dishes and stains from clothing."
However, Walters notes 'this does not apply to your teeth'.
The dentist continues: "To see major effects, you would need to use boiling water, which is too hot to keep in your mouth. Since toothpaste contains cleansers, the water used does not matter."
As long as you're using a fluoride toothpaste according to the American Dental Association, and not too much water that it washes the toothpaste away, it doesn't matter whether your water is hot, warm or cold, so brush away!
Topics: TikTok, Social Media, Health, Mental Health
Poppy Bilderbeck