Friday 23 March 2018

Brushing Teeth and Still Enjoying Orange Juice



Most of the people prefer to start their day with orange juice. But one thing which bothers everyone is the combination of aftertaste toothpaste and the taste of orange juice. This harsh taste is too strong that some people consider either brushing or having orange juice, but not the both.

The ingredient that bothers
The bad taste which remains there after brushing is due to a special ingredient called sodium laureth sulfate (SLS). This ingredient mainly belongs to the class of additives which are called surfactants. This class mainly includes ingredients which are added in toothpastes, shampoos, and soaps.

When you brush your teeth with a toothpaste containing SLS, you get your ability to taste the juice in two ways.
  • The immediately aftereffect of brushing and rinsing your mouth with SLS based solution is that your taste buds responsible to deliver you the sweet taste are suppressed.
  • SLS also suppresses the fatty molecules, which cover your tongue, responsible to suppress bitter taste.

Hence, it is a two-way action. But one thing that you need take into consideration is that SLS is helpful in generating bubbles which carry out the cleaning action.


How to stop SLS from ruining the taste of orange juice
Good news is that you can still enjoy your orange juice even after brushing your teeth. It is not absolutely necessary for toothpaste to contain SLS in order to be effective. Hence, there are some toothpaste products which do not contain SLS. But one thing that you need to keep in mind is that the ability of your toothpaste wouldn’t be as good as that of the one with SLS.

If you do not want to give up on the toothpaste’s ability to clean your teeth as well as on the taste that you can get from orange juice in the morning, there are some ways you can do it. You can chew sugar-free gum or drink a full glass of water to be able to enjoy your orange juice. The key is to generate enough amount of saliva to get rid of the effects of SLS.

Brushing your teeth after breakfast
It may also be a better idea to brush your teeth after the breakfast. You just need to rinse your mouth before the breakfast. Use none other than water for this rinsing. Then you can have your breakfast which would include your favorite fresh orange juice. Enjoy your breakfast to the fullest and then brush your teeth a few minutes after completing your breakfast. In fact, the biggest advantage of brushing your teeth after the breakfast is that you will be able to clean your teeth from the food debris pretty effectively.

In the end, it is always recommended to consult your dentist for any decision you want to make about your oral and dental health.