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Everyone knows that you need to brush your teeth twice a day, as well as floss.
And how regularly do you brush your tongue? Rather, let's ask the question in a different way: have you ever done it?
In fact, not many brush their tongues, but now more and more supporters of such a daily procedure began to appear. It is believed that this useful habit gets rid of bacteria in the oral cavity, helps fight bad breath and even improves the activity of taste buds. Spicy seems sharper, and sour-sour, etc.
Is this true or just another myth and brushing your tongue is just a waste of time? The answer is ambiguous and depends on what effect you expect from the procedure.
Does brushing your tongue help fight bad breath?
Yes, and this is one of the reasons why it should be done.
By the end of the day, bacteria living on the surface of the tongue, which are often the cause of bad breath, accumulate. The easiest and most obvious way to get rid of them is to brush your tongue. There are people in whom bacterial plaque accumulates to a greater extent, so tongue cleaning is indicated for them, it will help maintain oral hygiene.
Also, some people have so-called "geographic tongue" with small longitudinal cracks or grooves. It is easier for bacteria to hide in such a tongue, and in these cases it would also be good to clean the tongue every day.
Brushing your tongue really helps fight bad breath. But, according to expert scientists, this is probably the only plus of this procedure, and the benefits end there.
Do you need a special scraper?
Or can you use your own toothbrush for this?
Many people do this, but the fact is that the brush is designed to clean the hard enamel of the teeth, so all brushes are more or less soft. And to clean the tongue, on the contrary, you need some hard object, because the tongue itself is soft. So cleaning the tongue with a special scraper will be more effective.
What not to expect from tongue cleaning
There is an opinion that cleaning the tongue reduces the amount of toxins entering the body, which in turn increases immunity and improves digestion, and also has a good effect on the state of health in general.
In fact, by using a scraper, you are fighting only one group of bacteria that live only on the tongue. There is nothing special about your tongue, it's just that this type of bacteria feels good in this place.
If you do not have problems with bad breath or you are simply not up to it, then there is no particular reason to pay such close attention to cleaning your tongue. Although the feeling of freshness and cleanliness after the procedure is quite pleasant.
But in medical practice, there is no scientifically proven confirmation that cleaning the tongue is the cause of good health and excellent health.
