I feel like technique matters more than the brush itself.
Same here. My son’s teeth looked about the same with both, honestly. The dentist said it’s more about how well you brush, not just what you use. We ended up sticking with manual—less drama at bedtime.
Honestly, I’ve noticed the same thing with my daughter—she actually brushes better when she’s not distracted by the noise or buzz of an electric brush. We tried both for a few months, and her checkups didn’t change much. What helped most was showing her how to angle the brush and making sure she hit all the tricky spots. Technique really does seem to be the game changer, at least in our house.
Totally relate—I actually bought this fancy electric brush for my son, thinking it’d solve all our brushing woes. Turns out, he was more interested in pretending it was a spaceship than cleaning his teeth. Honestly, when we switched back to manual and just focused on actually brushing (and not launching into orbit), the dentist seemed just as happy. Maybe I’m overthinking it, but sometimes the low-tech way is less stressful... and less noisy at 7am.
That’s hilarious about the spaceship—my nephew did the same thing, except his was a “laser blaster” for fighting plaque monsters. I’ve wondered if electric brushes really make a difference for kids or if it’s just about getting them to actually brush, period. Does anyone else feel like the noise just wakes up the whole house? I kinda lean toward manual too, just because it seems less distracting (and less likely to become a toy).
I totally get what you mean about the noise—my daughter’s electric toothbrush sounds like a tiny jackhammer at 7am. Honestly, I used to think the electric ones were just hype, but her dentist said they can help if kids aren’t great at brushing on their own. Still, she gets so distracted by the lights and buzz that half the time it turns into a dance party instead of tooth brushing. Manual brushes seem more chill and less likely to end up under the couch (or in the bath, in our case). At the end of the day, I guess whatever actually gets them brushing is what matters most.
