Search for the term ‘tongue scraper’ on TikTok and you’ll be met with an avalanche of videos extolling the virtues of small tongue-cleaning devices resembling vegetable peelers or bottle openers.
Perhaps you’ve been seeking a pinker gape and have had a go with a tongue scraper yourself. But what does the science say about these tools? Should we be spending extra time at the sink scraping bacteria off our tongues? And will it help you if you’re prone to bad breath?
What’s the idea behind tongue scrapers?
The thinking is straightforward: cleaning your tongue helps reduce the build-up of debris and bacteria that can give it an unpleasant tinge and cause bad breath.
A healthy mouth contains 700 or so different species of bacteria. But as Associate Professor of Dental Education and Research at the University of Plymouth, Zoe Brookes, explains, poor oral hygiene and build-up of bacterial coatings or films on the tongue can drive down diversity and allow anaerobic species – those that grow without oxygen – to dominate.
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These species thrive particularly well in pits at the back of the tongue, where they break down proteins in food and saliva to produce the smelly, sulphurous compounds linked to bad breath.
“The more mature this film is, the more anaerobic bacteria there are – the more smell-producing bacteria,” says Brookes. “So, the idea is that these tongue scrapers are going to pull this film off, get rid of all the smelly bacteria and then you get a healthy microbiome.”
While tongue cleaning has been around for centuries, some cultures are more enthusiastic about it than others. But in the UK, there are no clear guidelines for dentists to follow on tongue cleaning, according to Brookes. “Maybe we need to do a bit more research, so we’re well-informed when patients ask us,” she adds.
Can tongue scraping reduce bad breath?
Bad breath that isn’t related to garlic, onions or other odorous foods can be hard to shift. It comes down to the particulars of a person’s mouth bacteria; some people seem naturally prone to harbour the smellier sorts.
“We don’t know if it’s a genetic predisposition, but there is no cure for it,” says Saliha Saad, Associate Professor in Biomedical Sciences at the University of West of England, whose research focuses on oral malodour. According to Saad, the only way to manage it is good oral hygiene, including brushing, flossing and potentially tongue cleaning.
Even if you’re not someone who routinely suffers from bad breath, these techniques could be useful when ‘smelliness’ increases due to, say, an infection. Everyone’s breath is expected to get worse in old age as declining mobility makes it harder for us to be fastidious about our oral health.
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One of Saad’s own studies shows that in people with noticeable bad breath, combining tongue brushing with an antibacterial spray can be an effective way to reduce tongue bacteria and bad breath for at least six hours.
More widely, research suggests that as the bacterial tongue coating is the main cause of halitosis, removing it is probably a safe bet, although recent studies on tongue cleaning are fairly limited.
What’s the best way to do it? Can’t I use an ordinary toothbrush?
Specialist tongue-cleaning devices range from metal or plastic scrapers to soft silicone brushes. Many toothbrushes also have a ridged patch on the back of the head that can work as a tongue cleaner.
In one 2022 study, researchers compared tongue scrapers and toothbrushes for reducing tongue bacteria and the smelly compounds they produce, and although both worked, there was no clear winner.
“There’s not a huge weight of evidence to say one’s better than the other,” says Brookes. “But perhaps if you’re a bit of a ‘gagger’, a scraper might be more comfortable than a toothbrush for getting right to the back.”
It’s whatever you feel comfortable with, agrees Saad, although she recommends soft bristles over hard tools. Once daily or a few times a week is enough, she adds, or just occasionally if you’ve never suffered from bad breath.
Sounds like it can’t do any harm – right?
Actually, we do need to take care, according to Saad, who warns against ‘aggressive’ use of tongue-cleaning tools that could damage the tongue, make it bleed, or let infections slip in.
“It’s like when we wash,” she says. “We don’t scrub until we see our skin turn red – and the tongue is much more sensitive, so we have to be careful to protect it.”
Some researchers think trauma to tongue cells could be linked to changes leading to mouth cancers. In recent years, it’s also been suggested that disrupting the tongue microbiome could destroy bacteria that keep our blood pressure in check by helping to convert nitrogen-containing compounds in leafy green vegetables into nitric oxide – a vasodilator, meaning it opens up our blood vessels.
Partly due to these concerns, one of Brookes’ studies suggests dentists recommend mouthwashes that help to maintain a balanced microbiome.
But she thinks it’s presumptuous to say that cleaning your tongue may detrimentally affect your blood pressure. Like any decision we make about our health, we must weigh the risks versus the benefits. So, if bad breath is affecting your social life, you could try some (gentle) tongue cleaning.
About our experts
Dr Zoe Brookes is an associate professor of dental education and research at the University of Plymouth.
Her research has been published in the British Dental Journal, Pharmacological Research and Journal of Vascular Research.
Dr Saliha Saad is an associate professor in biomedical sciences at the University of West England.
Her research has been published in Applied Microbiology, Journal of Clinical Dentistry and Journal of Breath Research.
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