If dental hygiene is a priority, you’re going to want to pay attention to the TSA’s latest advisory. The Transportation Security Administration just put out a friendly reminder that all electric toothbrushes with lithium batteries should be packed in carry-ons. Otherwise, they could be confiscated per TSA rules.
“Traveling with your electric toothbrush, or other items that buzz? If they have an installed lithium battery, you should pack them in your carry-on bag,” the TSA explained in an X post.
Traveling with your electric toothbrush, or other items that buzz? If they have an installed lithium battery you should pack them in your carry-on bag. Any spare or uninstalled lithium batteries must be placed in a carry-on bag.
More on this topic here: https://t.co/eZom4Dgvvp pic.twitter.com/jOBPOrsHH8
— TSA (@TSA) September 4, 2025
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The reminder comes a little more than a week after the FAA updated its prohibited items list to include popular beauty tools, including cordless curling and flatirons using gas cartridges, butane and gas cartridge refills.
Commenters were abuzz about the decidedly unhygienic toothbrush image used to illustrate the notice, and one outlet called the news “a buzz kill” in a clever play on words.
The reminder’s a serious one, however, due to the flammable and combustible nature of batteries in cargo hold. If they overheat or catch fire, it can be a serious issue since items aren’t detectible until it’s a major problem.
The FAA’s PackSafe page has a longer explanation and list of items that should always be placed in carry-ons. These include, but aren’t limited to cell phones, cell phone battery charging cases, laptops, cameras, smart phones, electronics, data loggers, PDAs containing lithium batteries, games, tablets, watches, etc. “Items that buzz” is a good way to remember.
The TSA confirmed that this announcement was not a rule change, but simply a reminder of the 2008 rule enacted to reduce the risk of lithium battery fires in cargo hold.
Spare (uninstalled) lithium metal and lithium ion batteries must be placed in carry-on, they also reiterated.
For regular updates on what’s currently listed, check out FAA.gov, and for a comprehensive list, check out FAA’s Pack-Safe Chart.
Related: TSA Banned These Beauty Tools From Checked Bags—Here’s What to Pack Instead
