Tooth Brushing

刷牙

Traditional wisdom is that we should brush twice a day, after meals. Well, actually, our obsessive-compulsive tooth-brushing practices lead to deterioratingoral health, including increased numbers of cavities and eventual tooth loss.

每天饭后刷牙？传统智慧不管用啦。其实每天的义务刷牙会损害口腔健康，造成蛀牙增多和牙齿脱落。

The reason is that the acidityin food and beverages causes tooth enamel to soften, and brushing right after eating an acidic meal strips enamelfrom the teeth, leaving them vulnerable to cavities. Leaving a little food behind actually doesn't cause as much damage as your toothbrush does as it scrubs the natural protective layer off the teeth.

食物和饮料中的酸性会造成牙齿釉质软化，马上刷牙容易得蛀牙。嘴里留点食物的害处绝对没有马上刷牙大。

So how the hell are we ment to do it?

那我们该怎么刷牙？

Studies show that flossing is much more important than brushing. Dental flossactually removes the bacteria that clump together between your teeth, without scrubbing and stripping layers off them.

用牙线清洁牙齿比刷牙要重要得多。牙线可以在不破坏牙齿保护层的情况下清理牙齿间堆积的细菌。