What Would Happen If You Never Brushed Your Teeth?...

Hey there! Welcome to Life Noggin.

You know those nights where you’re lying in bed and you realize you forgot to brush your teeth and then you go, “Do I really need to get up?”

Well, skipping one night wouldn’t be the end of the world, but what would happen if you never brushed your teeth? Like, ever?

Well, it’s actually a lot worse than you might think. Mouths are dirty, dark, moist places, full of breeding bacteria. In fact, one mouth can contain more bacteria than there are people on Earth!

When we brush our teeth, we’re scrubbing away that excess bacteria and also food particles and plaque. When we don’t brush, all that gross stuff just continually builds up in our mouths. 

Hurray! 

Our immune system goes into overdrive to try to clear all of it out, but they can’t. And the consequences to not brushing at all could be much worse than the cavities or gingivitis our dentists warn us about.

But before we get to that, let’s start with the basics.

Plaque is a film that coats your teeth and feeds on leftover sugars in your mouth. It produces an enamel-eating acid that gnaws away at your teeth, leaving holes known as cavities. Uncontrolled plaque can also cause inflammation of the gums, aka gingivitis, discolored teeth, oral abscesses and horrible bad breath. 

Yeah, I should probably go brush, too.

When bacteria really starts to build up, you’ll increase your risk of developing something called periodontitis, which is the erosion of tissue, gums and bone that support your teeth. The mouth just can’t hold the teeth any more so they fall out. This is the leading cause of tooth loss and if you never brushed your teeth, you’d probably have a lot less chompers than the rest of us.

Now, this may seem like your run-of-the-mill dentist spiel, but this stuff can get serious. The bacteria in your mouth is both good and bad, but things like MRSA and Staphylococcus aureus can thrive in there. And if you never brush your teeth, harmful bacteria like these can worm their way under your gums and get access to your blood. 

Yikes.

Bad oral care has also been linked to serious diseases such as heart disease, COPD, pneumonia, and endocarditis, which is an infection of the inner lining of your heart channels or valves. So if you’re leaving your mouth to fend for itself, you’d better watch out for these conditions.

A few controversial studies have also claimed to have found links between bad oral hygiene and things like dementia and erectile dysfunction. 

And remember how not brushing erodes areas of your mouth? Well, studies have shown that those pockets may serve as reservoirs for HPV and cancer-causing substances.

Thankfully now, we have modern toothbrushes and floss to protect our pearly whites, but in ancient times, people chewed on twigs to clean their teeth, then scraped the surfaces with the frayed end.

So yeah, things have got a lot better. 

How many times a day do you brush your teeth? I want to know if any of you have been slacking. Let me know in the comments section below or tell us what we should talk about next.