Blizzident (Blizzbrush) tooth cleaning sponge review

Full review

Over the years I have seen a few interesting solutions for cleaning the teeth.

The concept and execution of each has varied quite considerably. Some have been better than others.

Yet none have replaced the manual or electric toothbrush.  

The mouthpiece style toothbrush has gotten closest conceptually, but still it does not clean well enough be a replacement or even equivalent to the old fashioned approach.

Blizzident is a company that has for many years looked to innovate in oral care.

They created a 3D toothbrush and a 3D flosser which were certainly unique and won quite a few fans.

The issue with these products has been their bespoke nature.

The process of getting one made is slow and more costly than conventional toothbrushes and flossing tools.

But now they have a new product, a tooth cleaning sponge.

It is called a sponge, because it is the most appropriate name for it, but technically it is not a sponge, because it does not retain dirt and mixture.

It is actually made from silicone, which is 100% antimicrobial.

Whilst technically there is a difference, you, like me, would likely call it a sponge.

Of course this isn’t quite the normal sponge you would pick off the shelf at the local store, it is a little more unique.  

The material is not as dense.  It is light and there are thousands of holes in the structure created by all the strands of silicone.

The fiber thicknesses and pressures of the used material are designed to mimic toothbrush bristles to reach better into the gumline, or in technical terms the gingival sulcus.

The design and principle behind it are really simple.

This silicone ‘sponge’ has been precision cut to one of 3 sizes.

The sizes are to suit the different mouth sizes of children, men and women.

The overall shape of the sponge fits the shape of the typical human mouth, with a slit in the top and bottom of the sponge for the teeth to fit into.

The idea is that the teeth in the lower arch fit into the slit on the underside of the sponge, whilst the teeth in the upper arch fit into the slit on the top side of the sponge.

With the teeth in place, you then use a specific motion to clean the teeth in as little as 6 seconds.

The results from using the sponge far exceeded my expectations.

Having been disappointed many times over by mouthpiece toothbrushes like Amabrush and Y-Brush, I was shocked by the plaque disclosing tests I completed with Blizzident.

Take a look at the before and after shots.

No, the clean is not perfect, but it is pretty incredible for chewing on a piece of ‘sponge’. I am impressed.

Here are the results having chewed on the sponge for 30 seconds.

That extra chewing time does make a difference.  Much less plaque after 30 seconds, but still some remains.

The majority of the remaining plaque is actually between the teeth, in an area only floss would reach.  I had not flossed in the before or after photos shown.

I genuinely did not expect results like this.

Such a simple solution has provided very impressive results.

Given that Blizzident are not trying to be better than a manual or electric toothbrush, but just provide an alternative approach, I think they have done a pretty good job.

There is no clinical data or studies that have been completed with this tooth sponge, so it is unclear how long term use of such a product would affect oral health.

It would be considerably reassuring to see some form of testing, even in a limited form to know whether this could in theory at least be used as an alternative to a regular toothbrush, without long term concern for our teeth and gums.

Whilst 6 seconds of cleaning is possible, you can clean for longer if you like.  You can also apply extra cleaning pressure, by pressing your hands on your mouth/cheek regions and by pressing your tongue against the sponge.

But, as good as the clean is, there are quite a few negatives associated with using this product, in my opinion.

For me at least, the biggest negative is how awkward it is.  

I am 5” 10” and of fairly average build.  I purchased the ‘mens’ sponge.  Perhaps I have a small mouth, but this sponge was a real mouthful.  To the point it felt awkward.

I am happy to try new products, but after quite a few attempts using this and practising the technique I still found it incredibly difficult to get into the mouth and uncomfortable when inside.

With more time, perhaps I would get more used to it.  But after a few weeks and many attempts, I don’t have the same desire to use this as I might other products.

The Amabrush mouthpiece brush head was bulky, but it was not as awkward to use as this sponge.

For those that have not used Blizzident or a mouthpiece toothbrush, the closest thing I can liken the experience to is getting an X-ray at the dentist.  You may recall having those plastic molds popped in the mouth to keep your jaw and teeth in an ideal position.  They are not painful, just awkward and unnatural.

You are supposed to be able to clean the teeth in as little as 6 seconds with this.  It took me longer than that each time to even get it in the mouth.  On average it was taking me about 10-15 seconds to get it in with what I perceived to be a good fit.

The 6 seconds of cleaning results shown above, were after the 10 or so seconds it took me to get it in place.  So in total it was taking about 20+ seconds to clean each time.

I certainly did not pop it in the mouth as effortlessly as the user does in the Blizzident tutorial video.

Thankfully I do not have a sensitive gag reflex.  I would imagine if you did it would be triggered trying to use this.  In fact, my fiancee, was almost gagging just seeing me use it!

Whilst the risk is likely low, it does too feel like a bit of a choking hazard.  It just consumes too much of the mouth. I could see some being a bit panicky about using it. You have to breathe through the nose.

It is also worth noting that once you have used it, you need to leave it out to dry.

Naturally, you want to keep it as clean as possible, so do you place it on the countertop, in a cupboard, in a case? The demo video suggests sitting it on top of a glass. Or perhaps you could have some sort of dish it is placed on.

For those that travel frequently, although light this is bulky. Yes, it could be compressed into some form of bag or case. But, no protective case is provided or available, aside from the basic ziplock bag it is delivered in.

Despite these criticisms, I think there is some potential here.

I understand the sponge has to have a certain mass to be able to function correctly, but maybe some of the capacity of the sponge, particularly in the centre could be reduced?!

Perhaps taking out some of the centre so it was actually more U shaped.  This may impact the cleaning results and structure of the product.

Perhaps this silicone could be placed inside a mouthpiece style brush head.  An outer frame gives some structure, but the silicon provides the soft and gentle material to bite into.

Blizzident does offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee, according to their website.  But, there is little information on the site about the conditions of this.

Maybe I could have switched to the womens sponge, which may have been a bit smaller and more comfortable.  But, the cleaning results might have been different too.

Even if this was an option, this is not a solution for the masses.  We all want to just buy a product and know that it is going to work. 

Still, I do see a place for this sponge.

I think some with particular disabilities could benefit from using this.

I know millions of people struggle with holding and moving a toothbrush around the mouth. This sponge could provide some very positive benefits for those people.  

However, there will be many that have the same issues that I have experienced and you need a good jaw function to actually perform the cleaning action.

It would certainly have to be assessed on more of a case by case basis.

Blizzident suggests denture wearers are a key user of this product and I can see why this would be.  But, even if cleaning false teeth, the principle remains the same.  It still has to fit into the mouth.

And for those with dentures, proper cleaning (with a brush) is still essential.  The denture needs to be removed (in most cases) to clean the underside that is in contact with the gum.

Putting aside the usability issues for a moment, it is worth looking at the costs and replacement cycle of this product.

The sponges are sold in packs of 6.

Each sponge is said to last 2 months, so each pack lasts you a year.

The cost is $128 including shipping.  At $21 per sponge, that is expensive.

A regular manual toothbrush costs $3-5!  

Yes, this could in theory save you quite a bit of time, but it is quite a significant price premium to pay.

A good electric toothbrush can be purchased for about $50.  Factor in the cost of replacement brush heads and over 3 years, a product like the Sonicare ProtectiveClean 4100 will cost approx $138.

Blizzident would cost around $384.

At 3x the price are the time savings worth it?  For the vast majority, I think not.

For those with disabilities, the question of price is a very different matter altogether. 

In many respects price is less of an issue, if it is a workable solution that allows the teeth to be cleaned in ways they can’t easily be currently.

And finally, whilst no toothbrush is perfectly sustainable as yet, manual brushes are starting to be. For the environmentally conscious, this is not the solution.