Dentist explains why this common morning mistake of coffee lovers ruins their teeth

It is quite normal for many people to have coffee first thing in the morning and then brush their teeth. However, a dentist advises against it. Dr. Shaadi Manouchehri, a dentist for the past 10 years—who goes by @dr.shaadi.manouchehri on Instagram—shared in a video why brushing after having coffee can be bad for your teeth. "Never brush your teeth after you have just had coffee," the dentist shared.

Manouchehri then went on to give the reasoning for it. "Coffee is quite acidic, especially if you add milk and sugar, which can make the acidity even worse, same concept if you go and brush your teeth straight away. You are rubbing acid onto the tooth and wearing the tooth away," she said. She advised everyone to wait at least 30 to 60 minutes before brushing their teeth. She added, "You don't actually have to brush your teeth, just rinse out with some mouthwash or drink water or drink water."

Besides that, she shared two other occasions when people should not brush their teeth. She spoke about why one should not brush after vomiting. "The contents of the stomach are extremely acidic and your teeth are made up of minerals, so when the contents of the stomach have come into the mouth, then the mouth is very acidic and if you brush straight away, you are rubbing that acid onto the tooth even more." She asked people to wait for 30 to 60 minutes before brushing their teeth after vomiting. 

Similarly, she requested people to brush their teeth before breakfast instead of after it. "Because if you brush straight away, you are going to be damaging your enamel and actually, when you first wake up in the morning, you have quite a lot of bacteria in your mouth and that needs to be brushed before you have your breakfast," she shared.

People in the comments found the advice helpful. @saretta.polpetta_ commented, "'Never brush your teeth after you've had coffee'... I *sipping on coffee.*" @angelab1006 wrote, "No one ever taught me this, why? So we can get more cavities and probably get more dental profits." @yaelrachel97 expressed, "I always brush my teeth before breakfast and everyone is like, 'Why would you brush your teeth before you eat?' I love being right." @circus_circles said, "I honestly don't know how brushing your teeth isn't the first thing everyone does in the morning." @jonahlupton commented, "So I've been brushing my teeth wrong my whole life."

Another dentist, Judy Cornelison, used to love wearing costumes at work to relax her patients. "I discovered early in my career that people don't like to come to the dentist," Cornelison said. It all started in 1994 when a patient got her a hat from a New Year Eve's party. "I wore it that day and it just changed patients' whole demeanor," she said. "It puts patients at ease." Her costume collection also started to grow since then. She had a singing turkey hat, "Super Floss" and a one-eyed, one-horned, flying purple people eater. She thinks wearing a costume works as "an icebreaker" with the patients. She retired about two years ago, but she still fills in at dental offices. Once she retired, many of her costumes and collections were gifted to an eye doctor who was also her patient. 

You can follow Dr. Shaadi Manouchehri (@dr.shaadi.manouchehri) on Instagram for more content on dental hygiene.

This article originally appeared 3 months ago.