Germs in your mouth can get onto your toothbrush, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you need to replace your toothbrush after being sick. Even though yourtoothbrushmay have germs on it, it’s not likely to reinfect you with the illness.
That being said, there may be times when it’s best toreplace your toothbrushor other family members' toothbrushes, as well as follow guidelines for taking care of toothbrushes.
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Do Germs Stay on Your Toothbrush?
When you’ve been sick with acold,the flu,COVID-19, or anotherinfectious illness, your toothbrush can harbor the virus or bacteria; some of them (likeflu viruses) hang on for a few days.
However, unless your immune system isseverely compromised, you probably don’t have to worry about the germs on your toothbrush reinfecting you.
Part of the reason why you don’t need to toss your toothbrush is that you’ve got yourimmune systemto protect you. When you get sick, yourimmune systemmakes antibodies to fight off germs and keep you from catching the same virus again.That’s why any cold or flu germs on your toothbrush won’t make you sick again after you recover.
Can My Toothbrush Make Others Sick?If you shared a toothbrush holder with other people in your home while you were sick, it’s best to replace all the brushes. While you might not get reinfected, thegerms could spread to othersand make them sick.
Can My Toothbrush Make Others Sick?
If you shared a toothbrush holder with other people in your home while you were sick, it’s best to replace all the brushes. While you might not get reinfected, thegerms could spread to othersand make them sick.
Another time to consider throwing away your toothbrush is after having a cold sore. Because the virus that causes cold sores remains in your body after the initial infection, you can be reinfected.
To prevent reinfection, the American Academy of Dermatology Association recommends throwing away your toothbrush, lip balm, cosmetics, and other products that may have touched the cold sore.
Should I Disinfect My Toothbrush After I’ve Been Sick?
The American Dental Association (ADA) notes that “there is little data in the literature regarding toothbrush sanitizing.”However, for people who wish to sanitize their toothbrushes, ADA points to a small study that found that 3% hydrogen peroxide for seven minutes was effective at reducing bacteria.
In a small study, researchers found that sanitizing toothbrushes using ultraviolet (UV) rays was more effective than saline and chlorhexidine gluconate solutions.UV light sanitizer products designed for toothbrushes are available online.
There are other steps you can take to keep your toothbrush as germ-free as possible according to the ADA:
Experts do not recommend putting your toothbrush in the dishwasher or microwave to sanitize it because the heat may damage it.
Summary
While it’s true that germs in your mouth when you’re sick can get onto your toothbrush, that doesn’t mean you’ll get sick again if you continue to use your toothbrush when you’re better. That said, your toothbrush could spread germs to other people in your home if you share a holder or toothpaste.
You don’t need to throw out your toothbrush and shouldn’t try to disinfect it after you’ve been sick. But if you’d feel better doing so, there’s no harm in getting a new one. In general, you should replace your toothbrush every three to four months or sooner if it looks worn out.
11 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Dental College of Georgia.Do you really need to toss your toothbrush after the flu?.American Dental Association.Cold and flu season.American Academy of Pediatrics.Don’t be quick to toss your toothbrush after a sore throat.Christiaansen A, Varga SM, Spencer JV.Viral manipulation of the host immune response.Curr Opin Immunol. 2015;36:54-60. doi:10.1016/j.coi.2015.06.012American Academy of Dermatology Association.Cold sore remedies dermatologists recommend.American Dental Association.Toothbrushes.Beneduce C, Baxter KA, Bowman J, Haines M, Andreana S.Germicidal activity of antimicrobials and VIOlight Personal Travel Toothbrush sanitizer: anin vitrostudy.J Dent. 2010;38(8):621-625. doi:10.1016/j.jdent.2009.08.011Tomar P, Hongal S, Saxena V, et al.Evaluating sanitization of toothbrushes using ultra violet rays and 0.2% chlorhexidine solution: A comparative clinical study. J Basic Clin Pharm. 2014 Dec;6(1):12-8. doi: 10.4103/0976-0105.145769American Dental Association.Toothbrushes.Schmalz G, Feindt L, Tanneberger F, et al.The role of toothbrush in the transmission of corona- and influenza viruses—results of an in vitro study.Clin Oral Investig. 2022;26(9):5741-5749. doi:10.1007/s00784-022-04530-wCenters for Disease Control and Prevention.Use and handling of toothbrushes.
11 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Dental College of Georgia.Do you really need to toss your toothbrush after the flu?.American Dental Association.Cold and flu season.American Academy of Pediatrics.Don’t be quick to toss your toothbrush after a sore throat.Christiaansen A, Varga SM, Spencer JV.Viral manipulation of the host immune response.Curr Opin Immunol. 2015;36:54-60. doi:10.1016/j.coi.2015.06.012American Academy of Dermatology Association.Cold sore remedies dermatologists recommend.American Dental Association.Toothbrushes.Beneduce C, Baxter KA, Bowman J, Haines M, Andreana S.Germicidal activity of antimicrobials and VIOlight Personal Travel Toothbrush sanitizer: anin vitrostudy.J Dent. 2010;38(8):621-625. doi:10.1016/j.jdent.2009.08.011Tomar P, Hongal S, Saxena V, et al.Evaluating sanitization of toothbrushes using ultra violet rays and 0.2% chlorhexidine solution: A comparative clinical study. J Basic Clin Pharm. 2014 Dec;6(1):12-8. doi: 10.4103/0976-0105.145769American Dental Association.Toothbrushes.Schmalz G, Feindt L, Tanneberger F, et al.The role of toothbrush in the transmission of corona- and influenza viruses—results of an in vitro study.Clin Oral Investig. 2022;26(9):5741-5749. doi:10.1007/s00784-022-04530-wCenters for Disease Control and Prevention.Use and handling of toothbrushes.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Dental College of Georgia.Do you really need to toss your toothbrush after the flu?.American Dental Association.Cold and flu season.American Academy of Pediatrics.Don’t be quick to toss your toothbrush after a sore throat.Christiaansen A, Varga SM, Spencer JV.Viral manipulation of the host immune response.Curr Opin Immunol. 2015;36:54-60. doi:10.1016/j.coi.2015.06.012American Academy of Dermatology Association.Cold sore remedies dermatologists recommend.American Dental Association.Toothbrushes.Beneduce C, Baxter KA, Bowman J, Haines M, Andreana S.Germicidal activity of antimicrobials and VIOlight Personal Travel Toothbrush sanitizer: anin vitrostudy.J Dent. 2010;38(8):621-625. doi:10.1016/j.jdent.2009.08.011Tomar P, Hongal S, Saxena V, et al.Evaluating sanitization of toothbrushes using ultra violet rays and 0.2% chlorhexidine solution: A comparative clinical study. J Basic Clin Pharm. 2014 Dec;6(1):12-8. doi: 10.4103/0976-0105.145769American Dental Association.Toothbrushes.Schmalz G, Feindt L, Tanneberger F, et al.The role of toothbrush in the transmission of corona- and influenza viruses—results of an in vitro study.Clin Oral Investig. 2022;26(9):5741-5749. doi:10.1007/s00784-022-04530-wCenters for Disease Control and Prevention.Use and handling of toothbrushes.
Dental College of Georgia.Do you really need to toss your toothbrush after the flu?.
American Dental Association.Cold and flu season.
American Academy of Pediatrics.Don’t be quick to toss your toothbrush after a sore throat.
Christiaansen A, Varga SM, Spencer JV.Viral manipulation of the host immune response.Curr Opin Immunol. 2015;36:54-60. doi:10.1016/j.coi.2015.06.012
American Academy of Dermatology Association.Cold sore remedies dermatologists recommend.
American Dental Association.Toothbrushes.
Beneduce C, Baxter KA, Bowman J, Haines M, Andreana S.Germicidal activity of antimicrobials and VIOlight Personal Travel Toothbrush sanitizer: anin vitrostudy.J Dent. 2010;38(8):621-625. doi:10.1016/j.jdent.2009.08.011
Tomar P, Hongal S, Saxena V, et al.Evaluating sanitization of toothbrushes using ultra violet rays and 0.2% chlorhexidine solution: A comparative clinical study. J Basic Clin Pharm. 2014 Dec;6(1):12-8. doi: 10.4103/0976-0105.145769
Schmalz G, Feindt L, Tanneberger F, et al.The role of toothbrush in the transmission of corona- and influenza viruses—results of an in vitro study.Clin Oral Investig. 2022;26(9):5741-5749. doi:10.1007/s00784-022-04530-w
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Use and handling of toothbrushes.
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