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How to Clean Your Tongue Properly

The tongue is an important part of the digestive system. It helps the teeth during mastication (chewing), making sure that everything is ready to pass through the esophagus. However, not everyone is aware that the tongue is susceptible to bacterial infection like the rest of the mouth. There are cases where people do not include the tongue when brushing. Learn how to clean tongue and why brushing it with a tongue brush is necessary.

Should You Brush Your Tongue?

Are you supposed to brush your tongue? It’s a resounding “yes!” Brushing the tongue is necessary to have a clean tongue and prevent the bacteria from causing complications. The human tongue is covered with papilla (hair-like bumps where the taste buds are located) that helps process the taste of the food. In the early days of human evolution, the taste was important to identify which food contained toxic materials. While this evolutionary adaptation is still present, nowadays, the tongue is primarily used to stimulate the body for eating.

When eating, it is normal to have residue on the teeth and the lower areas of the tongue. While this can be resolved by drinking water, there will be particles that will be stuck in the crevices of the teeth and some parts of the tongue. In discussing how to clean the tongue, dentists suggest light brushing along the tongue. Although this can be done using a toothbrush, the bristles of some toothbrushes are too stiff, which can either irritate or wound the upper layer of the tongue.

Tongue brushes and scrapers are developed specifically for the purpose to clean the tongue. These tools have become more popular over the years and are readily available in drug stores and supermarkets. Tongue brushes and scrapers help minimize the bacteria population living in the mouth, similar to brushing does. Cleaning the tongue with a scraper lessens the chances of experiencing bad breath as well.

Tongue brushes and scrapers look like regular toothbrushes with tiny bumps instead of bristles. These bumps are relatively soft to prevent irritating the tiny papillae. Regular tongue brushing can prevent common tongue ailments and other dental infections.

Advantages of Using a Tongue Brush/Scraper

Should you brush your tongue?

While most dental professionals would still say that a toothbrush can work on how to clean the tongue naturally, some dental manufacturers that developed tongue brushes and scrapers. As mentioned, tongue brushes are specifically designed to clean the entire muscle without hurting the sensitive papillae.

Here are other perks on learning how to clean tongue and using a tongue brush/scraper after brushing your teeth.

1. Decreases Bacteria Population

The microbiome inside the mouth is always active, and bacteria constantly stick to the tongue. These bacteria eat the remains of any food particle that sticks on the tongue. Using a tongue scraper and learning how to clean the tongue remove the bacteria colony and maintain their population to prevent them from causing trouble for the teeth.

2. Avoid Bad Breath

Should you brush your tongue? Yes, you should because it inhibits bad breath.

Bacterial activity is the cause of bad breath. When the mouth becomes dry due to the lack of saliva production, the environment becomes suitable for bacteria to multiply. Prevent bad breath from happening by spending a couple of minutes cleaning the tongue after brushing the teeth.

An unhealthy tongue encourages bacteria build-up, leading to halitosis or extreme bad breath.

How To Clean Your Tongue

The tongue is an important part of the mouth and the digestive system. The next time you brush your teeth, take a minute or two to clean your tongue.

Tongue brushes are a helpful tool in maintaining the cleanliness of and scraping off the harmful bacteria that may colonize the tongue. Grab your tongue brush or scraper and follow these steps on how to clean tongue properly.

1. Stick out the tongue.

How to properly clean your tongue?

Make sure to relax your tongue while scraping/brushing it off. To reach all the tongue areas, stick it out and let it stretch. This method of how to brush your tongue also helps the tongue scraper clean the tongue efficiently.

2. Place the tongue scraper at the back of the tongue.

The proper direction of your tongue brush/scraper should be from the most inner part near the tonsils until the tip. This prepares your tongue for the correct method on how to scrape your tongue.

3. Press the scraper from the back to the front.

Carefully move the brush or the scraper from the back end of the tongue. Be careful not to rush the scraper because it may irritate the papillae in the tongue. Rinse and repeat.

Sunrise Dentistry Helps With Bacterial Infection and Tongue-Related Problems

(05/17/2024)
by Sunrise Dentistry.

More Information: https://sunrise-dentistry.com/blog/how-to-clean-your-tongue-properly/

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