Tags: toothbrush | contact lens | hygiene | oral health

4 Personal Items You Should Replace Immediately

a pile of old combs and toothbrushes look dirty at a migrant detention center on the southern border
(Mark Lennihan/AP)

Monday, 05 August 2019 10:28 AM EDT

Is your toothbrush more than four months old? And how about your contact lens case? These and other everyday essentials need regular replacing, no matter how comfortable you are with them.

At the top of the list is your toothbrush. To benefit oral health, your toothbrush needs to be in tiptop form. The American Dental Association suggests replacing it as soon as bristles start to fray, usually every three to four months.

If you wear contact lenses, you should replace your contact lens case every three months, sooner if you see any cracks, which can harbor bacteria. For proper care, after putting your lenses in your eyes, rinse the case with fresh lens solution, shake out excess liquid, and leave the empty case open to air dry.

P.S.: Do not keep contacts in your eyes for longer than they are designed to be worn, and always replace them according to the schedule prescribed by your eye care professional.

If you are like many Americans, you probably do not use as much sunscreen as you should. That could mean leftover product once summer ends, season after season. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires sunscreens, like other nonprescription drugs, to have an expiration date unless testing conducted by the manufacturer has shown the product will remain stable for at least three years. So, do not use sunscreens after their expiration date or, if there is no date, if purchased more than three years ago.

The hardest item to let go of could be in your bedroom – your pillow. There are no hard and fast rules about when to toss an old pillow, but the National Sleep Foundation suggests every one to two years, especially if it has not been protected from dust mites with a zippered cover. (Consider getting one for your next pillow.)

Washing helps, but check label instructions before tossing a pillow into the washing machine – some will not survive the spin action.

© HealthDay


Health-News
Is your toothbrush more than four months old? And how about your contact lens case? These and other everyday essentials need regular replacing, no matter how comfortable you are with them.
toothbrush, contact lens, hygiene, oral health
326
2019-28-05
Monday, 05 August 2019 10:28 AM
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