a descriptive cross - sectional study of students of federal school of dental therapy and technology , enugu , nigeria was conducted using self - administered questionnaire . all the students in year 14 were included in the study .
data was obtained on demography , frequency and duration of tooth brushing , texture of tooth brush , factors influencing choice of tooth brush , how often tooth brush is changed and why , the use of additional tooth cleaning agent , the practice of tongue cleaning and tongue cleaning agent used , frequency of snacking and types of snacks consumed .
prior to administration of questionnaire , the aim and nature of the study was explained to the participant and informed consent obtained .
approval for this study was obtained from the ethics and research committee of the university of benin teaching hospital . statistical package for social science ( spss version 15.0 )
a total of 242 students responded with dental technology students constituting 52.5% and dental therapist students constituting 47.5% .
male : female ratio was 1:1.6 . majority ( 95.5% ) of the respondents were single , in 2025 year age group ( 75.2% ) and 45% were in the first - year class .
about one - fifth ( 21.1% ) of the respondents brushed their teeth once daily , 71.9% brushed their teeth twice daily and 5.8% brushed more than twice daily ( table 1 ) .
more than half ( 52.1% ) spent 35 minutes brushing and 30.2% usually checked their teeth in the mirror after brushing ( table 1 ) .
texture of tooth brush used by respondents were soft ( 17.4% ) , medium ( 78.9% ) and hard ( 2.5% ) ( table 1 ) .
about half ( 51.7% ) also combined chewing stick and only 0.8% use dental floss .
the main factors that influenced the choice of tooth brush was strength ( 63.2% ) , brand 12.8% and size ( 10.3% ) , cost ( 1.2% ) , combination of factors ( 4.2% ) , no special consideration ( 5.8% ) and no response ( 2.5% ) ( table 1 ) . 
 
frequency and duration of tooth brushing four - tenth of the respondents replaced their tooth brush every 3 months .
fraying of tooth brushes was the most common reason for tooth brush replacement ( table 2 ) . 
 
the following were used for tongue cleaning : tooth brush ( 81.8% ) , tongue cleaner ( 9.5% ) , chewing stick ( 2.1% ) and knife ( 0.8% ) . majority ( 66.1% )
consumed snacks occasionally and only 20.2% reported regular snack consumption . meat pie ( 46.7% ) was the most common snack consumed followed by biscuits ( 18.2% ) , cakes ( 11.2% ) , others include egg roll , chin - chin , ice cream and fruits ( fig .
1 ) . majority ( 92.6% ) expressed confidence in teaching people how to brush properly and 90.5% had done that in the past , of which 35.1% had discussed with everybody they knew , i.e. parents , siblings , other relatives , friends and neighbours ( table 3 ) . 
 
the frequency and duration of tooth brushing correlates with oral hygiene and oral health . brushing twice daily for acceptable duration and the use of a mirror to visualise one 's efforts
twice - daily brushing confers optimal effect on oral hygiene and gingival condition of both males and females ( 23 ) .
twice - daily brushing is recommended by most dentists in order to improve plaque control , since most patients are not able to achieve sufficient plaque removal by performing oral hygiene measures at home ( 24 ) . in this study ,
majority of the students ( 71.9% ) brushed twice daily and 52.1% brushed for 35 minutes .
this is comparable with 68% twice or more daily brushing recorded among turkish non - dental university students ( 25 ) , lower than 81% among mongolian dentists ( 26 ) but higher than what was recorded in many other similar studies ( 12 , 2730 ) . in this study ,
this is consistent with findings of other studies ( 22 , 25 , 31 ) .
females have been said to have better oral health knowledge ( 32 ) , to exhibit greater interest in oral health and to consider sound teeth more important than males ( 33 , 34 ) .
medium texture tooth brushes were the most frequently used and the most important factor considered when purchasing a tooth brush by the students was the texture .
it has been documented that tooth brush with frayed bristles is ineffective for proper cleaning and also causes adverse effects like gingival recession and oral ulcer , and it was recommended that tooth brushes should be replaced every 3 months or when the bristles are frayed ( 19 , 35 , 36 ) . in this study , 40.5% replaced their tooth brush every 3 months and the usual reason for tooth brush replacement was frayed bristles in 45.5% of respondents . chewing stick
is known to contain antimicrobial agents which are beneficial for prevention and treatment of periodontal disease ( 37 ) but when not properly used it can cause tooth wear lesions .
some tooth brush users believe that the use of chewing stick in addition to tooth brushing is the most effective way of reducing mouth debris ( 38 ) .
a study even concluded that the chewing stick is more effective than tooth brushing for reducing plaque and gingivitis , when preceded by professional instruction on its correct application ( 39 ) .
it has also been said that the use of chewing stick appears to be more effective than tooth brushing for removal of plaque from the embrasures , thus enhancing interproximal health ( 39 ) . the additional tooth cleaning method used by
the use of dental floss was minimal and this is similar to the findings of kirtiloglu et al .
tongue cleaning is a component of oral hygiene measure , as tongue coating is known to be the predominantly implicated cause of halitosis ( 40 , 41 ) .
several volatile sulphur compound producing bacteria have the ability to colonise the dorsum of the tongue in periodontally healthy subjects ( 42 ) and they are reduced by tongue cleaning ( 43 , 44 ) . in this study ,
tongue cleaning was carried out by majority using the tooth brush and only 9.5% used the tongue cleaner . increased snacking frequency and inadequate tooth - brushing have been identified as predisposing factors for tooth decay ( 28 ) . regular snack consumption was practiced by 20.2% .
this percentage is fewer than what was reported previously in other studies ( 11 , 45 ) .
the dental auxiliaries have been said to play an important role in educating their friends , family members , patients and their society on how to maintain good oral health ( 1821 ) .
respondents in this study will be able to carry out this role as 92.6% expressed confidence in teaching people how to brush their teeth and 90.5% are presently actively discussing issues on tooth brushing with parents , siblings , other relatives , friends and neighbours .
the level of oral self - care behaviour of the dental therapist and dental technology students is satisfactory , but there is room for improvement of tooth brushing and dietary habits in relation to snacking .
the zeal to educate others about proper tooth brushing revealed in this study suggests that these students may also be helpful in promoting oral health promotion .
the authors have not received any funding or benefits from industry to conduct this study .
 objectiveto determine the tooth brushing , tongue cleaning and snacking behaviour of dental technology and therapist students.methodsa descriptive cross - sectional study of students of federal school of dental therapy and technology enugu , nigeria . 
 self - administered questionnaire was used to obtain information on demography , frequency , duration and technique of tooth brushing and tongue cleaning as well as information on consumption of snacks.resultsa total of 242 students responded . 
 dental technology students made up 52.5% of the respondents and dental therapist in training made up 47.5% . 
 majority ( 63.2% ) of the respondents considered the strength of tooth brush when purchasing a tooth brush and 78.9% use tooth brushes with medium strength . 
 seven - tenth ( 71.9% ) of the respondents brush their teeth twice daily and 52.1% brush for 35 minutes . 
 about one - third ( 30.2% ) brush their teeth in front of a mirror . 
 chewing stick was used by 51.7% of respondents in addition to the use of tooth brush . 
 tongue cleaning was done by 94.2% with only 9.5% using a tongue cleaner . 
 only 20.2% reported regular snacks consumption . 
 nine - tenth ( 90.4% ) of respondents were previously involved in educating others , apart from their colleagues , on tooth brushing.conclusionthis survey revealed that most of the dental therapy and technology students had satisfactory tooth - brushing behaviour . 
 the zeal to educate others about proper tooth brushing revealed in this study suggests that the students may be helpful in oral health promotion . 
Materials and methods
Results
Discussion
Conclusion
Conflict of interest and funding