Solar toothbrush could make toothpaste obsolete

http://www.canada.com/topics/bodyan...=df82688a-4ef9-4334-943c-ecfe3b4cd3b7&k=99762

It contains "a titanium dioxide rod in the neck of the brush, just below the nylon bristles. It works when light shines on the wet rod, releasing electrons. Those electrons react with acid in the mouth, which helps break down plaque. No toothpaste is required...."

Is this just more technology for technology's sake?
I wonder how the electrons produced and the ever present acid would react to old amalgam fillings?

Kind of reminds me of the $400 laser comb.

Sounds interesting but would be cautious as acid can damage teeth and would something that causes "complete destruction of bacterial cells" in a petri dish be safe to use in your mouth?

well... titanium hit by UV light does ionize the O2 around it into a small amount of ozone which does kill germs and can denature some nasty stink proteins and such which is why you can use a UV source and a titanium dioxide to deodorize the air.

But ozone isn't actually good for you either and wheres the danger of toothpaste? Where will you get your fluoride from then ?

No matter how good something might be at killing germs, I think that actually washing the area in question might be a good idea anyway. I use a very high powered deodorant that kills germs, but I still wash under my arms anyway. I think I'll continue to brush as well thank you!

No good for me then, I tend to brush my teeth with my mouth closed (you know what I mean)

Time will tell how this works out, but at first glance, it certainly looks interesting.

One downer with traditional toothpastes are that most (all?) have some kind of abrasive to assist the bristles in removing plaque and slightly polishing the tooth enamel. You have to be careful to avoid overdoing it since it can needlessly decrease the enamel thickness. In time, the enamel is slowly replaced with calcium deposited from saliva.

Cool gadget hehehe.. but i think we still need fluoride.

PhotonBoy said:

One downer with traditional toothpastes are that most (all?) have some kind of abrasive to assist the bristles in removing plaque and slightly polishing the tooth enamel. You have to be careful to avoid overdoing it since it can needlessly decrease the enamel thickness. In time, the enamel is slowly replaced with calcium deposited from saliva.

Click to expand...

My Brauns stop after 2 mins for that very reason.

heh, brushing too much is not a very common problem compared to the opposite

And most toothpaste has actual soap in it, sodium laureth sulphate or whatever, which washes away too much for some people. Affecting normal mouth flora in not so good ways. But there are toothpastes that still offer the cleaning without the actual soap.

Bottom line is that is just feels good and feels refreshing to brush your teeth with toothpaste.