What if you didn’t brush your teeth for a year?

Justin Merritt |

TED-Ed

• October 2026

At any given time, your mouth is maintaining a delicate balance between hundreds of microbial species, which is why dentists agree that you should brush twice and floss once every day. But what if you just… didn’t? If you stopped doing any oral hygiene, how long would it take for your mouth to get messy? Justin Meritt investigates how not brushing can impact your health over time. [Directed by Lee Oz, Eliška Oz, Oz Animation, narrated by Addison Anderson, music by Salil Bhayani, cAMP Studio].