Manual or Electric Toothbrush. Which is best?

I brush my teeth a lot.  A little too often and a little too ferociously at times according to my dentist.  Seriously I got told off by my dentist for scrubbing too hard.  This was starting to cause me problems with gum recession and over sensitivity.  The stark warning from that if I continue to brush as I was the gums would ware away and they do not come back. That sounds painful and would no doubt look unsightly.

I decided it was time to find me a solution.  I tried to be a little gentler as I went about my brushing business but found it near impossible not to scrub my pearly whites like there was no tomorrow.  Something had to give so I decided to try out an electric model.  I opted for the Philips Sonicare DiamondClean Black which was billed as the premium electric toothbrush on the market.  It also looked the part in an elegant black colour which provided some bonus style points too.

The thing that always put me off going electric before was the ‘hassle’ of charging the unit it always seemed a right faff and a bit of a nightmare for travelling with.  The Philips model I opted for came with a pretty ingenious glass charger that acts not only as a storage glass but always ensures it never runs out of power.  For travelling the is a durable case that can be juiced up from a USB too so you won’t be left in the lurch.

So I have babbled about the accessories and look of the toothbrush but how does it actually clean.  I remember the first time I used it (a couple of weeks back) I hated it.  The vibration sensation was really weird and I couldn’t tell if I was using it properly.  It felt weird just to move the unit back and forward without scrubbing away as usual, I thought that there was no way my teeth could be getting properly cleaned.  The ‘clean’ cycle completed and I rinsed out running my tongue across my front teeth as I did.  They actually felt smoother and cleaner than ever before.

As the days passed I was starting to getting used to this new way of cleaning my teeth.  The big bonus for me was my gum health which had noticeable improved in such a short space of time.  I have noticed less sensitivity too – granted I have also switch to Sensodyne toothpaste so can’t give all the credit to the DiamondClean.

Before I started to write this post I thought I would give my manual toothbrush a try to see how it ‘brushed up’.  No matter how hard I scrubbed away my teeth did not seem as clean as they had been since I switched.  Safe to say I am well and truly converted.

Philips DiamondClean £250 RRP from philips.co.uk