Japanese oral care
This week too was a bit thin for silly surveys, so the best I can do for you today is a not really silly and not really very long, but quite interesting pair of surveys from DIMSDRIVE Research’s 133rd ranking survey on two Japanese teeth-related subjects, frequency of brushing and oral care other than brushing.
Demographics
Both surveys were conducted between the 16th and 24th of January 2008. The first had 12,020 respondents with 52.9% female, the second 11,963 with 53.0% female.
You’ll notice in the second question that regular check-ups feature really quite low, and flossing or inter-dental brushing (uggh, dislike both and don’t bother myself) feature nowhere, not even in the detailed run-down of the results by age group. Also, there are only about 5,000 votes in total, which means about half the population don’t take extra any oral care bar brushing. For those of you who have experienced oyaji breath you might be surprised to learn that it was young men rather than older ones who were more likely to brush less than once a day or not at all.
I also chew Xylitol gum after every meal at home; PLUS X Gum from Lotte is exceptionally nice.
Ranking results
Q1: How often do you usually brush your teeth? (Sample size=12,020)
Votes Percentage Three or more times a day 2,240 18.6% Two times a day 6,029 50.2% One time a day 3,434 28.6% Less than one time a day 260 2.2% Don’t brush my teeth 48 0.4% Don’t know 9 0.1% Q1: How often do you usually brush your teeth? (Sample size=12,020, by sex)
Votes (Male) Percentage (Male) Votes (Female) Percentage (Female) Three or more times a day 780 13.8% 1,460 23.0% Two times a day 2,576 45.5% 3,453 54.3% One time a day 2,056 36.3% 1,378 21.7% Less than one time a day 205 3.6% 55 0.9% Don’t brush my teeth 43 0.8% 5 0.1% Don’t know 4 0.1% 5 0.1% Q2: Other than brushing your teeth, what methods for maintaining oral health do you practice? (Sample size=11,963, free answer)
Votes Percentage Gargle 2,463 20.6% Chew gum 1,288 10.8% Drink green tea 338 2.8% Clean tongue 271 2.3% Visit dentist regularly 179 1.5% Drink lots of water 168 1.4% Suck breath freshening mints 107 0.9% Massage gums 106 0.9% Limit consumption of sweet foods 100 0.8% Use a toothpick 87 0.7% Q2: Other than brushing your teeth, what methods for maintaining oral health do you practice? (Sample size=11,963, by sex, free answer)
Votes (Male) Percentage (Male) Votes (Female) Percentage (Female) Gargle 1,159 20.6% Gargle 1,304 20.6% Chew gum 500 8.9% Chew gum 788 12.4% Drink green tea 104 1.8% Drink green tea 234 3.7% Clean tongue 102 1.8% Clean tongue 169 2.7% Use a toothpick 63 1.1% Visit dentist regularly 127 2.0% Drink lots of water 56 1.0% Drink lots of water 112 1.8% Visit dentist regularly 52 0.9% Suck breath freshening mints 72 1.1% Massage gums 46 0.8% Limit consumption of sweet foods 67 1.1% Suck breath freshening mints 35 0.6% Massage gums 60 0.9% Limit consumption of sweet foods 33 0.6% Limit eating between meals 38 0.6%
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pm215 said,
February 11, 2008 @ 02:09
Gargle 2,463 20.6%
Chew gum 1,288 20.3%
That second one’s not right, surely? I make 1,288 just 10.8% of the 11,963 sample size.
osama boom laden said,
February 11, 2008 @ 08:17
i chew gum. the dental care in japan is not highly prioritised by many including myself. i have not been to a dentist for 5 years. i brush my teeth and chew gum. i have a teeth whatever attitude but i do not want to kiss a girl with f@cked teeth.
Nick Ramsay said,
February 11, 2008 @ 10:34
It’s been 8 years since my last visit to the dentist (when I had to get a wisdom tooth pulled out). I brush twice a day, and can’t be bothered with flossing.
Ken Y-N said,
February 11, 2008 @ 23:54
pm215, thanks! I’ve fixed the numbers.
Garrett said,
February 12, 2008 @ 00:43
Flossing is not on the list? I’m surprised as floss, while disappearing from convenience stores, is now widely available at drug stores - in wide variety, too. I’m also a regular flosserof the opinion that brushing without flossing is a lot like showering without washing under your arms.
Harvey said,
February 18, 2008 @ 16:02
After talking to a few dentist friends about my Japan life without seeing a dentist regularly, they convinced me to floss every single day.
I beg you. Floss.
You’ll thank me later!
I try to get to a dentist once a year now, but I really slacked on that for my first 4 years in Japan. Eep.
glasstabletop said,
February 19, 2008 @ 09:33
OH my god, I can’t believe people don’t floss!! Everytime I floss (which is quite regularly) I am often amazed and disgusted at what I am able to release from those hard to reach areas.
(I like the comment about showering and not washing your armpits–how true!!)
Also, up until a few years ago I came to realize people don’t visit the dentist every 6 months. I thought this was a normal thing until someone said, “are you kidding? I haven’t been to a dentist since I had my wisdom teeth pulled!”
Well, I am 33 and I haven’t had a single cavity nor other dental problem as of yet. Good for me, right? Ok, I’ll shut up now.
(p.s. I love my new tongue scrapper that I bought on one of my trips back home)
Nick Ramsay said,
February 19, 2008 @ 13:30
I don’t understand how people floss. I mean, it’s hard enough getting that stuff between your teeth, and then it cuts into your gums when you pull it back and forth! Maybe there are two types of people in this world: Flossers (those with 1millimeter gaps between their teeth), and the rest of us whose teeth are so tightly wedged together you’d have to pull every other tooth out just to get between them!
glasstabletop said,
February 19, 2008 @ 16:06
Well, I think you are right about the two types of people (flossers & non-flossers) but I can’t say I have major gaps between my teeth though. As for the bleeding, yes, that takes getting used to and even though I floss often, I still bleed quite a bit.
I enjoy flossing until I bleed too much and then I rinse with original Listerine for disinfectant & tartar control. Potent stuff.
I am a little on the OCD side when it comes to dental care. ;o