Should I brush before or after breakfast?

Dr. Pereslete answer's MacKenzie's question of 'is it better to brush before vs. after breakfast?', and explains the reasoning behind his answer.
Thank you MacKenzie for the question!
Dr. Pereslete practices General Family and Cosmetic Dentistry in Mission Viejo, CA.

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[GarryBurgess]

Just use toothpaste instead of ketchup on your sausages and eggs.

[julia-xulv]

I have always blushed my teeth as soon as I wake up. I always do it even though everyone else does it after breakfast, I just don't understand it. Aswell as that, I hate it when people say 'EW how do you eat with the taste of toothpaste' I don't brush my teeth and have breakfast straight away, I get dressed, make my bed and pack my school bag. Anyone else?

[pointh]

Dang I never thought of it that way. I figured it would be wiser to brush after breakfast because you would have fresh breath and clean teeth all the way until you eat again. Brushing your teeth when you first wake up right before eating breakfast sorta felt like working out getting sweaty, showering, and then putting those same sweaty clothes back on

[ThatDamnPandaKai]

This is what I've been told. IN the morning, use mouthwash to kill the bacteria in the mouth, as there isn't any real plaque build-up at night if you've brushed before bed and not eaten anything. Then after you eat, brush your teeth to get rid of the particulates from your food.

[db]

In my opinion, brushing your teeth before bedtime at night is JUST as important as brushing em in the morning when waking up.

[dlsafc]

You're meant to wait 30 mins after brushing until you eat. And vice versa, unless you've ate something sugary - you have to wait 40mins-1 hour before brushing, as you could damage your teeth. This is all advised by NHS England and I am surprised you didn't mention it.

[doctoredable]

Along the same lines of reason I often tell my patients that like sweets that the best time to eat things that contain sugar is after brushing and flossing or using Softpiks. Sugar causes no direct harm to teeth. What causes harm is the creation of acids when plaque bacteria convert sugar into lactic acid. The acid causes cavities and also promotes the growth of bacteria that cause cavities and gum disease.

[Matthews_Media]

Well you can also argue that if you brush your teeth before breakfast that you will then end up with food in between your gums ALL DAY long until you brush at night.. Thus doing more damage than the 10mins of exposure to food if you eat breakfast and then brush... And then you don't have the horrible aftertaste...

[bchik]

Eating after brushing my teeth kinda resets the whole thing imo

[lxfucgm]

You all are just over thinking it.

>Brush your teeth when you wake up.
>Brush your teeth before you go to bed.

Thats all there is to it.

[ghiless]

To not get the toothpaste taste you could just get up at 5am like I do to have time to do some stuff while the taste wears off until 7AM is breakfast and you're good to go

[martins]

For a change, I've brushed my teeth after breakfast for quite some time now. I felt a lot fresher throughout the day. I, however, felt it better though.

[krissdbpc]

Well whats the point brushing and then having your cup of coffee.. wouldn't it just leave your teeth with the coffee stains for the rest of the day. Isn't it better to just rinse with a mouthwash in the morning and then brush after breakfast ?!

[viannccaa]

What I think is you should brush before and then eat breakfast 30 minutes later. This is so you won’t taste toothpaste in your breakfast and to just keep your mouth clean without interactions with food or any sort of liquid. This is what I do everyday and it works great.

[allendsa]

Thank You Docter For Guiding Us - - - !

[NickDrinksWater]

It makes sense that even after brushing at night, bacteria slowly develops again as you sleep, so if you wake up and eat its basically feeding that newly developed bacteria. Another thought is the fact you're eating more of that bad bacteria which could cause an imbalance in the gut overtime. I have to take a pill everyday when I wake up and I cant eat for 45 minutes to an hour anyway, so for me it makes sense to brush right after I wake up and then eat, and I just chew gum inbetween eating food throughout the day since brushing more than twice a day just wears down your enamel quicker, so I've always preferred chewing sugar free gum inbetween brushing

[tiltedbybox]

The reason I brush after breakfast is to remove the food if any gets stuck... So what the best would be to do it before and after?

[sofiacausa]

You can use a non mint toothpaste to avoid that issue of the flavor mixing with food

[chrisuk]

This doctor knows what he is talking about. Very hard to brush right away if you work early so I just eat and brush right after to have a good breath at work

[valeriesanchez]

After 72 hours,  plaque hardens into tartar, which forms along the gum line and makes it hard to clean your teeth and gums completely. Eventually this buildup irritates and inflames your gums, causing gingivitis.
So on that note.
I brush after meals twice a day.