Go Beyond Brushing

THE IMPORTANCE OF GOING BEYOND BRUSHING

Brushing and flossing are vital to proper oral care, but they only go so far. Bacteria are hiding in places where brushing, and even flossing, can’t reach. That’s why it is important to strive for a 100% WHOLE MOUTH CLEAN.

Plaque biofilm growth

Plaque biofiolm grows rapidly, so it is important to recommend an oral health routine that attacks plaque biofilm growth from all angles. Within minutes of brushing, plaque biofilm doubles every 1-2 hours in the early stages and within days, microbes form a complex 3-D colony that can contain more than 25 distinct species.¹

Poor habits may compromise your patients’ oral health, and without proper technique, plaque control is difficult to achieve through brushing and flossing alone.

Plaque biofilm grows rapidly. The image to the left shows plaque biofilm beginning to appear within minutes. On the right, microbes have formed a complex colony within days.

Brushing is not enough

Without proper technique, plaque control is difficult to achieve through brushing and flossing alone. Poor habits may compromise your patients’ oral health and mechanical methods alone may not be enough to control plaque, gingivitis, and caries:

• Not all patients brush twice daily²
• Adults brush between 24 and 60 seconds on average,³ which is significantly less than the American Dental Association’s recommendation of 2 minutes⁴
• Less than 10% of patients floss regularly⁵

Disease prevalence

Plaque biofilm’s ability to grow quickly, combined with a lack of proper technique and an incomplete oral health routine, results in a high rate of disease prevalence in the United States:

• 92% of adults aged 20-64 years have had dental caries in their permanent teeth⁶
• 53% of adults aged 20 years and older have gingivitis⁷
• 42% of children aged 2-11 years old have had dental caries in their primary teeth⁸

100% Whole mouth clean

Brushing and flossing cover 25% of the mouth’s surfaces, so even after brushing and flossing, plaque bioflm is still present in the mouth. In just 30 seconds, an antimicrobial rinse—with a fixed combination of 4 ESSENTIAL Oils—can penetrate deep into plaque biofilm to kill the remaining bacteria. A proper oral care routine that incorporates brushing, flossing, and rinsing offers a virtually 100% WHOLE MOUTH CLEAN.⁹

When added to brushing and flossing, LISTERINE® Antiseptic significantly reduces more plaque and gingivitis than brushing and flossing alone.¹⁰

Studies show…

• 52% greater plaque reduction at 6 months when added to brushing and flossing¹⁰
• 21% greater gingivitis reduction compared to brushing and flossing^10-12