Oral hygiene is an important aspect of body care as it helps to prevent bacteria and other types of germs from accumulating in our mouths.
It’s recommended that we brush our teeth at least twice daily to keep them healthy. That way, we experience fewer toothaches and gum troubles that tend to manifest because of poor oral hygiene.
A new oral hygiene survey has shed light on some of the most surprising oral hygiene habits in the UK. These include the following:
39% Of 25-34-Year-Olds Do Not Have Proper Oral Hygiene
It appears that this demographic does not consider their oral health to be important at all as they go about their daily activities, forgetting to even brush their teeth.
Interestingly, other studies confirmed this as well, which proves that dental practitioners have a lot to do to ensure that people begin to take their oral hygiene seriously.
In 2021, the research found that 21% of Brits had moderate-to-high sugar diets and 19% did not brush their teeth twice a day, which contributes to tooth decay.
For these reasons, efforts have to be made to ensure that people get educated about their oral health as much as possible to prevent these diseases from happening.
28% Of Respondents Admit That They Have Shared Their Toothbrush At Least Once
Shocking, but true! 28% of the survey respondents acknowledged sharing a toothbrush with someone else at least once in their lifetime.
You might probably wonder why this is the case, as it certainly sounds baffling why someone would ever want to share a toothbrush in the first place.
Dental hygiene should be something we ought to hold dear to us, which is why sharing toothbrushes shouldn’t ever be a thing.
For one, toothbrushes can harbour a lot of bacteria which could spread from person to person when the toothbrush is shared. This, in turn, could then lead to such people contracting harmful diseases and, at the same time, increasing the number of bacteria on their toothbrushes.
There is also the issue of gum disease, which is a serious health issue nowadays, as when left unchecked, could lead to even much worse conditions such as tooth loss, tooth decay, and even severe toothache.
Fortunately, health professionals have created awareness to let people know that sharing toothbrushes could lead to gum disease. With this awareness being created, hopefully, people can gradually stop this habit and take their oral health more seriously.
Conclusion
This survey has just looked at the oral lives of adults in the UK and from the findings, the results are not so encouraging.
With the right education and awareness, people can become conscious of their oral health.
They can also learn about the benefits and also diseases they stand to contract when they do not maintain proper oral hygiene.
Hopefully, the percentage of adults with poor oral hygiene will reduce even further when they start to maintain the best oral hygiene practices.
Hive Business, a dental accountants organization based in Cornwall, UK, as part of National Smile Month 2022, created this survey.