Biofilm: what dental plaque really is
Biofilm consists of bacteria and their metabolic products, food residues and components of saliva.
Dental deposit – formerly plaque, today usually called biofilm – consists of bacteria, their metabolic products, food residues and components of saliva. It is not dirt that could be rinsed away but an ordered community that attaches firmly to the tooth surface.
A balance that can tip
In a healthy mouth the bacteria on the mucosa and the teeth are in balance. If that shifts – through inadequate cleaning, through sugar, through smoking or a weakened immune system – the species that trigger inflammation gain the upper hand.
This is why mechanical cleaning cannot be replaced by anything: a biofilm cannot be rinsed away, it has to be removed.
Answered briefly
Frequently asked questions
An organised community of bacteria that attaches to the tooth surface with a protective layer of its own. Within that layer the bacteria are largely shielded from rinses and antibiotics.
It reaches the surface of the biofilm, not its interior. A biofilm has to be disrupted mechanically – by brush, interdental brush or the instruments at the practice. Rinses are a supplement, not a substitute.
Recolonisation begins within hours; after one to two days the biofilm is organised again. That is why doing it daily matters more than the thoroughness of any single cleaning.