Tube Tricks: Getting the Most From a Tube of Toothpaste

Almost all of us try to save money by getting the most out of everything. That can include your tube of toothpaste. 

Most toothpaste tubes offer the advice:

"Squeeze tube from the bottom and flatten as you go up.” Following this procedure helps make it easier to get the most out of your toothpaste investment.

But what exactly happens when you squeeze a tube of toothpaste?

Toothpaste is technically a solid material, but its mixture is a complex blend of liquids and the small, abrasive particles that do the work of cleaning your teeth. When you squeeze a tube of toothpaste, the parts of the paste closest to the walls of the tube liquefy under pressure, and allow the solid, pasty centre to flow out onto your toothbrush. Of course, toothpaste also turns to a liquid under the pressure you apply when you brush your teeth.

 If you have arthritis in your hands, or if you simply like gadgets, there are many tools designed to help you squeeze the last of the toothpaste out of the tube. And if your tube of toothpaste has a flip-top cap, storing it by balancing it on the cap gives you the benefits of gravity and can help get the most out of the tube.

 Also, some people find that using a high-quality rechargeable power toothbrush or sonic toothbrush helps them get the most from a tube of toothpaste because the superior vibrating power of the brush means that they don’t need as much toothpaste to get the same amount of lathering that they would if they were brushing with a manual brush.

Source: oralb.co.za