Ionic Toothbrushes – what are they and how do they work?

Ionic toothbrushes remove plaque through the use of ions, which are molecules that carry a net positive or negative charge. This is relatively new kind of powered toothbrush and you may not have heard of it before.

A dental hygienist wrote an article about ionic toothbrushes and explained that she discovered them when a patient came in for a dental cleaning and her teeth were amazingly plaque-free. The dental hygienist had never seen anything like it before. In fact, that very evening, she bought an ionic toothbrush for herself and noticed how slippery clean her teeth felt when she woke up in the morning.

Studies Show Ionic Toothbrushes Are More Effective than Electric or Manual Brushing

In a short-term study done to evaluate the effectiveness of electric toothbrushes, manual toothbrushes and ionic toothbrushes, while there wasn’t a tremendous difference between the effects of electric and manual toothbrushes, ionic toothbrushes significantly reduced plaque and gingivitis. (NCBI )

How Do Ionic Toothbrushes Work?

An ionic toothbrush has a small titanium battery built into the handle of the toothbrush. The battery connects to a titanium rod that runs throughout the toothbrush. A thin metal plate or band surrounds the toothbrush handle. Before brushing, you moisten your hands with water, and when your fingers come in contact with the metal band, the wetness creates a closed circuit. When you brush, the charge transfers to your teeth, which repels plaque from the tooth surface.

Plaque has a positive charge, and the surface of your teeth has a negative charge. The opposite charges are why your teeth attract plaque and it sticks to them. Science explains this activity through the law that opposite polarity charges attract each other but the same polarity of charges repel each other.

The toothbrush releases a lot of positively charged ions, which change the polarity on your teeth from negative to positive. Now your teeth temporarily repel the plaque instead of attracting it. The ions neutralize acids produced by bacteria in the mouth and remove positively charged stains from your teeth too.

Dr. Baker stays on the cutting edge of dental technology to help his patients receive the best dental care possible.