Why I've started brushing my teeth with my other hand even though it just feels wrong – Hayley Matthews

While spending too much time on the internet as usual, I saw a post on brushing your teeth with the hand that you normally don’t use.

Can brushing our teeth with the other hand make us more creative? Hayley Matthews is intrigued (Picture: Carsten Koall/Getty Images)

The article went into great length about the benefits of using the less dominant hand and why we should all be doing it, and I was amazed! Something so simple can make us more creative, it claimed. But how?

I tried it and it just feels wrong, like pouring chocolate sauce on your chips instead of ketchup! A kind of wrong that goes against all of your mind’s wants and needs.

It's a special kind of weird feeling that messes with your head. So why do it?

Brushing with your less dominant hand was said to have some simple benefits, like the tendency to put less pressure on your teeth, reducing the chances of aggravating your gums and causing abrasion of your pearly whites.

However, a much bigger incentive for me was the suggestion that it might actually increase our creativity.

The brain is an amazing organ and one that improves through mental stimulation and new patterns. Our brains continuously adapt and can even rewire themselves, all through the growth of new neurons.

According to the article I read, one way to grow these neurons is by using your less dominant hand to brush your teeth.

And let's face it, after the lack of stimulation, activities and social interaction the past two years, we could probably all do with some new brain cells. So why not give brushing with that wonky hand a try!

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