How Long You Should Wait to Brush Your Teeth After Drinking Coffee?

glamour.com:

before getting ready for the day—or gulping down a cup first thing to wake yourself up during the week. On these kinds of mornings, I usually wait until after I’ve finished my coffee before brushing my teeth (for the obvious reason of avoiding coffee breath).This, however, isn’t a great idea according to , a clinical assistant professor at the NYU College of Dentistry.

The reason is because coffee is acidic, and it can take half an hour or so for your salivary proteins to break down that acid in your mouth.

If you right after having coffee, you’re pushing the acid into the pores on your teeth (yes, the fact that teeth even have pores was news to me as well).Dentists answer our most burning teeth-cleaning questions.By Some slightly better news for people who add a lot of milk to their coffee: “It reduces the acidity level, so that helps,” Dr.

Tang says. Even so, she recommends swishing some water around in your mouth after getting your morning caffeine jolt, which can help rinse away the acid, and waiting a full 30 minutes before brushing—even for those who drink more milk than coffee. (You don’t need to worry about this if you prefer to brush before you eat or drink anything in the morning, however.)While we’re on the subject, you shouldn’t necessarily worry about how long it takes you to finish your morning coffee, regardless of what you may have seen recently , says , a dentist in New York City.