The “ideal” timing for changing your toothbrush has been revealed

Primrose Freestone, a professor of microbiology at the University of Leicester in Britain, has settled the debate about the best time to change your toothbrush.

The debate occasionally escalates among social media users regarding when to change a toothbrush ; some say a month, while others use it for several months.

Freestone explained to the British newspaper “Daily Mail”: “As for the toothbrush, it should be changed every 3 months, but if you have an infection in the mouth or gums, you should change the brush more frequently to avoid reinfecting yourself.”

According to the researcher, the mistake lies not in the timing of replacing the brush , but in the way it is stored and cleaned after each use.

She explained that “food residues left after brushing teeth can stimulate the growth of bacteria and fungi. Your mouth contains more than 500 types of bacteria and fungi, and some of them transfer to the toothbrush every time you brush your teeth, so cleaning the brush is essential.”

She emphasized that the toothbrush should be washed after each use under hot tap water for at least 30 seconds to remove toothpaste, bacteria, or food residue that may have gotten stuck during washing.

The biology professor added that a toothbrush can be thoroughly cleaned by soaking it for 30 minutes in sodium bicarbonate, hydrogen peroxide, or an antibacterial mouthwash, or by exposing it to hot steam from a kettle for one minute.

She added: “As a microbiologist, I wash my toothbrush weekly with antibacterial hand soap to remove food residue and eliminate any remaining microbes.”

She added: “I also make sure that my toothbrush is not near the toilet because the vacuum spray can contaminate it with bacteria.”