Two minutes, softly
The evidence on how to brush is short and stable: a soft brush, a light hand, two minutes, twice a day.
Brushing research rarely makes headlines because its conclusions barely move. The numbers have been checked for thirty years and they hold: brushing longer removes more plaque, up to a point; that point arrives around two minutes.
The timer studies of Van der Weijden and colleagues in the early nineties established the curve, and a 2025 systematic review confirmed it with modern rigour: two minutes beats one minute with moderate certainty, and a third minute adds little. Two minutes, twice a day, remains the standing advice of every major dental body.
Pressure is not cleanliness
The instinct to press harder is the most common brushing error. Plaque is soft; it yields to the tip of a bristle, not to force. Force, applied daily for years, is how gums recede — the 2019 review on bristle stiffness and soft-tissue injury is unambiguous that softer is safer.
A soft brush held lightly, at a slight angle to the gumline, moved in small strokes without hurry: that is the whole technique. Use a fluoride toothpaste as your dentist advises; spit, do not rinse the work away; close the tap while you brush.
Why this matters to us
REIN sets its bristles soft on purpose. A soft brush asks for the technique that the evidence recommends anyway. The object and the practice agree with each other; that is the whole design.
- van der Weijden GA, Timmerman MF, Nijboer A, Lie MA, van der Velden U. A comparative study of electric toothbrushes for the effectiveness of plaque removal in relation to toothbrushing duration. Timerstudy. Journal of Clinical Periodontology. 1993;20(7):476–481. Source →
- Seuntjens et al. Plaque scores after 1 or 2 minutes of toothbrushing: a systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal of Dental Hygiene. 2025. Source →
- Ranzan N, Muniz FWMG, Rösing CK. Are bristle stiffness and bristle end-shape related to adverse effects on soft tissues during toothbrushing? A systematic review. International Dental Journal. 2019;69(1):25–32. Source →