Don't forget your toothbrush

Have you any idea when you last bought a toothbrush? OK, put it this way - was it before or after decimalization? We're meant to do it once every three months, but the average Brit keeps theirs going twice that long, usually until it looks as if the dog's chewed it.

Why? Perhaps because the whole business of buying a new brush has simply become too baffling. Stores are offering an increasingly bizarre range - even though dental experts insist 90 per cent of their effectiveness is in the way they are used ie regularly.

So, let's assume all the gimmickry is just harmless fun. If that's so, which brushes score the highest points for sheer novelty value?

I bought 10 of the quirkiest available - each from a different manufacturer - and then talked to the people responsible. Or tried to.

From left to right:

BRUSH: Sensodyne Travel Brush (pounds 2.39)

GIMMICK: Head folds away "uniquely and conveniently" into the handle. Cute idea, but otherwise looks a bit dull.

WHAT'S THE IDEA? If you're travelling, it saves luggage space (just under three inches).

WHO'S RESPONSIBLE? Stafford-Miller Ltd, of Welwyn Garden City.

WHAT THEY SAID: Precious little. Disappointingly reluctant to reveal any fascinating trade secrets. I was told the brush was "easy to carry in a handbag, pocket, briefcase or toiletry bag" (which is commonly known as stating the blindingly obvious). The firm also makes the Sensodyne Switch (pounds 2.29), featuring a replacement head. They told me this eliminated "the inconvenience of going to the shops". Gosh.

NOVELTY RATING: 5

BRUSH: Oral B Indicator (pounds l.89)

GIMMICK: A blue stripe in the bristles.

WHAT'S THE IDEA? Clever, this. The stripe gradually fades over three months so you know when you should buy a new one.

WHO'S RESPONSIBLE? Oral B - part of Gillette, which also owns Braun. Based in California.

WHAT THEY SAID: "Most people don't think much about brushing their teeth; they just do it automatically," said worldwide business director Scott K Meyer. "We do extensive research which focuses on features aiming to break through this low interest." Scott said the most commonly rejected idea is a brush with paste in the handle. "This wouldn't fill a consumer need with a meaningful benefit."

NOVELTY RATING: 8

BRUSH: Wisdom Contour (pounds 1.89)

GIMMICK: Easily the grooviest shape - a huge handle (more like a hair brush) tapers to a slim neck and an oval-shaped head.

WHAT'S THE IDEA? The main benefit is grip - the handle is made from two materials "for maximum comfort and control".

WHO'S RESPONSIBLE? Wisdom, based in Suffolk (fascinating fact: they made a brush for George III more than 200 years ago).

WHAT THEY SAID: Improved grip prevents traumatic experiences, it seems. "I don't know if you've ever let a brush slip down your throat," said toothbrush marketing director Janice Collins, "but it can really make you gag." Janice also admitted to a toothbrush fixation. "I talk about them at parties," she said. "And I've seen terrible ones in people's bathrooms."

NOVELTY RATING: 7

BRUSH: Jordan Magic (for children) (pounds l.49)

GIMMICK: The handle changes colour as you brush, due to heat from your hand and mouth. The average change time is apparently 2-3 minutes, although mine changed in 30 seconds. Possibly because I'd put it on the radiator.

WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA? Dentists are told that colour-changing handles are "a fun way to provide serious support to your educational efforts by extending brushing time".

WHO'S RESPONSIBLE? Jordan, based in Oslo, Norway.

WHAT THEY SAID: Jordan sent me the results of a survey showing that 99 per cent of people who tested the brush "wanted to take it home". They didn't say whether this had anything to do with the fact that they got it for free.

NOVELTY RATING: 8

BRUSH: Aquafresh Flex'N'Direct Interdental (pounds 2.29)

GIMMICK: Several, in fact. A funny wiggly neck, plus different length filaments. Oh, and a directable head, which pivots.

WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA? The neck is meant to reduce the effect of brushing too hard, while the longer filaments clean the gaps between your teeth (hence "interdental"). The directable head is supposed to reach less easily accessible areas of your mouth.

WHO'S RESPONSIBLE? SmithKline Beecham, Brentford. (They also make Ribena.)

WHAT THEY SAID: "We have brainstorming sessions to generate lateral ideas. For example, why should it have a plastic handle and polymer bristles? Why can't it be something else - say, a chamois leather - as long as it cleans teeth?"

NOVELTY RATING: 8

BRUSH: Mentadent Profile (pounds l.65)

GIMMICK: A little "clock" device at the base of the handle.

WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA? It's not a real clock, you understand, just a plastic disc you turn to indicate which month you started using the brush and hence when you should replace it.

WHO'S RESPONSIBLE? Elida Faberge's team, based in Italy.

WHAT THEY SAID: "The time indicator is a clever twist to help remind people," said UK dental marketing manager Shay Drohan. "The designer thought it would be a nice addition at no great cost." Shay also explained the idea behind "ripple action" bristles. "Brushing your teeth is like dusting books on a shelf," he said. "You remove dust from the grooves." So now you know.

NOVELTY RATING: 7

BRUSH: Superbrush (pounds 2.99)

GIMMICK: It's got three heads!

WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA? These heads "hug" the teeth, so you brush them from all sides at once.

WHO'S RESPONSIBLE? A London firm called Dent-O-Care - although the brush itself was perfected over 10 years by a bloke called Rolf Barman, "a respected dentist in Norway" (what is it with Norwegians and teeth?).

WHAT THEY SAID: Stephen Rubinstein, Dent-O-Care's managing director, said 80 per cent of people brush for less than 30 seconds at a time - but argued that at least by using his model they'd get "three times the value". "I get passionate about this brush. It makes a lot of sense," he said.

NOVELTY RATING: 9

BRUSH: Crest Gum-Line (pounds 1.79)

GIMMICK: A little channel down the middle of the bristles, making the outer ones considerably longer.

WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA? The outer ones brush the bit where the tooth meets the gum. The inner ones clean the tooth itself.

WHO'S RESPONSIBLE? Procter & Gamble, Egham, Surrey.

WHAT THEY SAID: Not much. When I asked how many people there were on the design team, their reply was: "No comment." They gave the same response when asked who ran it. As for revealing the inspiration behind the brush design, they sent me a fax telling me, word for word, exactly what it says on the packet.

NOVELTY RATING: 4

BRUSH: Reach Wondergrip (for children) (pounds 1.99)

GIMMICK: Handle is bright pink and spiral-shaped.

WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA? Amazing neon colours ensure kids will want to brush their teeth regularly. That's what it says on the pack. And the spiral? Well, it's just a spiral, really. Looks nice, though.

WHO'S RESPONSIBLE? Johnson & Johnson, based in Paris, Athens, Dublin, Rome and, er, Maidenhead.

WHAT THEY SAID: "Toothbrushes are a very exciting market," said a marketing man who insisted I couldn't reveal his name. "Often these bells and whistles (a marketing term for "gimmicks") do encourage people to brush better. We have to reject hundreds of ideas, though. Some of them are terrible, like black bristles. Consumers would go: 'Yuk!'"

NOVELTY RATING: 6

BRUSH: Total Precision (pounds 2.29)

GIMMICK: The bristles are splayed outwards, which is pretty weird as this is traditionally the sign that your brush has reached that "ancient and manky" stage.

WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA? These bristles, combined with straighter ones in between, apparently mean the brush works equally well, whichever brushing method you use (ie round and round, up and down, left to right etc).

WHO'S RESPONSIBLE? Colgate Palmolive, in Guildford, Surrey.

WHAT THEY SAID: "We took thousands of volunteers and strapped electrodes to their hands and heads," explains Kathryn Vaz Ferreira, senior product manager for toothbrushes. "A computer recorded their brushing strokes, then our technical people designed a brush to suit them all. It took about three years."

NOVELTY RATING: 7

Copyright 1996 MGN LTD
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