Re: Toothbrush sanitizer

"Martin Lynch" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Hello,
>
> Just finishing up a class in microbio, and found it interesting
> in reading the materials about "microbial control".
>
> Three of the methods that I found a particular interest
> in are the use of ozone, UV, and pressurized steam (e.g. autoclave).
>
> Now, I see these toothbrush sterilizers on the market, and
> I've come across different companies that use one of these
> three methods, each claiming to be the best method.
>
> What are your thoughts on which type of toothbrush sterilizer
> would be best?
>
> My thought is that UV would be the worst, because, if I recall,
> the drawback is that the UV must come in direct contact with
> the germs, and on a brush, the germs will be hidden by the
> crevices and by organic matter.
>
> Which leads me to believe either ozone or steam would be the
> best method.  With ozone, of course there is the danger to
> someone who doesn't realize that it is dangerous to breath.
> With steam, the messiness and the inconvenience of not knowing
> whether the aparatus has reached the proper temperature to
> sterilize.
>
> What do you guys think?  By the way, at what temperature does
> an autoclave need to steam in order to sterilize?  I've seen
> toothbrush sterilizers that do not look like they are pressurized,
> so I'm guessing that they operate at about 120 deg C (at 1 atm).
>
> Discuss...


You don't generally need to sanitize your toothbrush more that just rinsing
with water, or with some hand soap. More important thing is where you keep
you brush after you used it. If you put it in a pool of water on a dirty
sink, then you get bad germ growth on it (as well as on the sink). Drying
the brush by shaking of extra water, or even wiping it with a tissue paper
could do more than you need. Don't waste you money on those fancy steam
sanitizers. As an extra precaution, wash the brush with soap before you use
it, too.

By the way, mouth rinse solutions are claimed to kill bugs even between the
teeth on contact. So I guess, these solutions could be used to rinse the
brush, too. Just an idea.

And don't forget to floss :-)

-Emir