Electric Toothbrush vs Manual Toothbrush, Which Is Better ?

Many dentists will tell you that you can achieve optimal dental health by flossing and using a manual toothbrush. While this is true, most people don’t do either of these things properly, which results in poor oral health.

Many argue that what makes an electric toothbrush more effective at plaque removal is that it makes the user more likely to brush properly and thus effectively.

Most electric toothbrushes have a built in timer that ensures that you brush your teeth for the recommended 2 minutes.

A Look At The Research

Many clinical studies have shown that various electric toothbrush models are more effective at reducing plaque than a manual brush.

For example, a randomized control study of 106 adults tested the Sonicare DiamondClean (with three different heads) and a standard manual toothbrush. The study tested single-use efficacy in plaque removal and the findings were significant.

They found that the two DiamondClean heads removed significantly more plaque than the manual brush.

In fact, the DiamondClean compact head resulted in almost 100% more plaque removal in hard-to-reach places compared to the manual brush.

We find it interesting to note that the results differed between Sonicare replacement heads.

Another Study also looked at the Sonicare DiamondClean compared to a manual toothbrush.

The goal was to evaluate the ability of the Sonicare DiamondClean to reduce gingivitis and gingival bleeding, as well as the removal of plaque compared to a manual toothbrush over time.

This differs from the previous study mainly because they were studying more long-term than immediate effects.

142 adults completed the randomized clinical study. Subjects were assigned a brush for the next four weeks and were assessed at 2 and 4 weeks. The results were astounding.

The results found that the Sonicare was up to 2x more effective at reducing gingivitis and gum bleeding relative to a manual toothbrush. Furthermore, the DiamondClean was up to 5x more effective at removing plaque.

Conclusion: Which Is Better?

So what do you think? Electric toothbrush vs manual toothbrush? Is it possible to effectively clean your teeth with a manual toothbrush?

Sure. But why would you when an electric toothbrush will do it so much better.

There are countless other studies out there that show how much more effective electric toothbrushes can be.