Comparing Oral Hygiene Devices: Waterpik Vs Electric Toothbrush

Have you found yourself wondering lately which is actually better: Waterpik vs Electric Toothbrush?

Let us first just say, well done! This means you are really taking your oral hygiene seriously and stepping it up a notch.

Because oral hygiene is no game and keeping your mouth healthy and disease free is quite a difficult task.

Only a small percentage of people have taken the step to really spend time ensuring their dental health will see them through for a healthy and happy life.

So let us help you answer your question, is waterpik or electric toothbrush better?

Which Is Best: A Toothbrush Or A Water Flosser?

Before we start listing all waterpik vs electric toothbrush pros and cons, first you need to know that they both do completely different tasks.

An electric toothbrush replaces a regular toothbrush. Mmeaning it cleans the visible surface of the teeth, but does nothing to the areas between the teeth and under the contact area. As opposed to the waterpik which replaces string floss, which does the exact opposite, cleaning the areas between the teeth efficiently but fails to properly clean the visible surfaces.

So while you are reading this comparison, know that you cannot use only one of them for all your oral hygiene needs. Each is definitely a development from the regular toothbrush and string floss.

Electric Toothbrush

There are 2 main types of electric toothbrushes. The reciprocating type (which goes back and forth) or the more popular rotating type (which moves in a circular manner), and we recommend the latter.

Pros:

Waterpiks

There are a few models and brands on the market, as well as different designs. The original model was large and immovable, consisting of a reservoir for water or mouthwash and connected to a small pen like device that delivers a pulsating water jet at the press of a button.

Newer models are smaller and more portable, but not as effective as the original. So here we talk mainly about the original model.

Pros:

Assess Your Oral Situation

It really depends on the situation in your mouth. If you have a relatively healthy mouth, with minimum cavities and little to no gum disease. And if you don’t have braces or a large restoration such as a bridge, then an electric toothbrush (while better) will not significantly affect your oral hygiene. In this case a regular toothbrush would be enough to do the trick.

However, a waterpik goes a long way in improving your gum health even if your mouth is already healthy. String floss simply can’t hold a candle to what a water flosser can do. So we advise you to go get one soon.

Do You Wear Braces?

The situation is different if the condition of your mouth is different and particularly with braces. Braces tend to trap food particles around them and very near to the gums. This makes it virtually impossible to use floss with the wires and elastics placed.

So on one hand, you need to clean around the brackets to minimize the risk of decay to the teeth, but on the other hand you also need to effectively clean between the teeth or else risk gum inflammation. So our advice in this situation, if you are able, get both devices.

We understand that this may take a large bite out of your budget, but really it is for the best. You are already paying thousands of dollars to get your teeth fixed with braces. Knowing how risky they are to your oral health, it is therefore only logical to spend a little bit more to make sure that you don’t have to do massive repairs after you remove your braces?

Waterpik vs Electric Toothbrush Final Word

Lastly we stress that a Waterpik is not a substitute for brushing and an electric toothbrush is not a replacement for flossing. You simply have to do both.

But in case you want to take it a little bit further with the effectiveness of cleaning, consider the pros and cons of our Waterpik vs Electric Toothbrush article. This will give you the information you need to make the riht choice for your oral situation.