I had a chance to try the Aquafresh Gel-Flex toothbrush. I give it one star out of five, and here is why.

Alexander Pope gave us the famous quotation, “A little learning is a dangerous thing.” This toothbrush appears to be based on the true notion that soft toothbrushes are better than hard ones, but it applies the principle completely incorrectly and, by so doing, it reduces its effectiveness.

Here is an old commercial that I believe is from back when the Aquafresh flex toothbrush was first introduced:

The Gel-Flex toothbrush is a step gentler than the original Flex, by providing a cushioning design in the head. Notice in this ad:

The flexible handle and the cushioning in the head are both supposed to help prevent you from pushing too hard.

However, a major purpose of having soft bristles on your toothbrush is to enable the bristles to get into the cracks and crevices both between adjacent teeth and between the teeth and the gums. The cushioning in the Gel-Flex defeats that purpose. Yes, it is possible to damage your gums by brushing too hard, and this brush certainly prevents that. But a soft-bristled brush will also prevent gum damage while providing the added advantage of cleaning effectively, which this brush does not.

Part of me wants to give this brush zero stars, but there is a possible benefit to the cushioned design. If someone is an over-aggressive scrubber, this toothbrush could help break them of this habit. Provided you could even get them to use this toothbrush. So we’ll go with one star. It’s certainly better than a hard brush.

I don’t like the deceptive design. It leads astray people who would otherwise get a really good brush.