Brush your teeth when you first get out of bed and before you get back in at night

Theyre the two most crucial times, says Kathleen W. Wilson, M.D., an internist at the Ochsner Health Center in New Orleans and author of When You Think You Are Falling Apart. That s because saliva (which keeps cavity causing plaque off teeth) dries up at night, so it s best to have all plaque cleaned off the teeth before sleep. It s also important to brush first thing in the morning to brush off plaque and bacteria (morning breath!) that may have built up as you slept.