By Christine Lunde
It annoys me when I go to the dentist and they ask if I floss. I do, and I would argue that I floss more than all my friends.
I know it’s a pain to floss. When I was younger I went through a stage where I neglected my dental hygiene all year. And I developed my first and only two cavities. Thankfully the teenaged obsession of good breath and looking attractive became more important than anything else. Brushing and flossing became a part of my daily upkeep. Today, years later, I actually enjoy the thick wax floss going up and down the grooves of my gums. To me, it’s like getting my back scratched.
So why floss? Dental floss is the most effective tool for cleaning the spaces between your teeth and arguably the most important place in your mouth for daily cleaning. Flossing helps remove leftover food particles and bacteria that have accumulated in the grooves of your teeth.
When bacteria from your mouth needs to be removed, a toothbrush doesn’t always do the trick. Flossing helps remove the buildup of bacteria that leads to plaque and tartar over time. Gingivitis, the earliest stage of gum disease, is marked with plaque buildup on the gums and teeth. Excessive buildup of plaque can cause tooth decay and bad breath, and no one wants to be known as the person with bad breath.
Flossing is arguably the easiest and cheapest way to take care of your body. Your oral health is the gateway to your overall health. Everything that goes into your body; food, medication and drink, goes through your mouth. The effects of food and drink on your body do markedly similar things to your teeth.
Brushing your teeth without flossing leaves your mouth only 65 percent clean. A 65 percent cleaning is hardly acceptable in any other aspect of your life, so why not go for the full wash?
Back to my love affair with waxed floss – it may be easier for you to floss with waxed dental floss, but weaved floss is what’s in, and does the job better. It will help you know when you’ve finished cleaning in between your teeth, (two ups and downs on each side of the tooth). Weaved floss will give you a “squeaky” feeling, even a little squeak, letting you know you can move on. You will also notice more particles on the floss, so you know it’s doing the job.
Regardless, if you are not flossing at all, anytime is better than none to begin, and using any type of dental floss is better than none at all. If you are just starting out, or have narrow spaces between your teeth you’ll find it easier to use waxed floss. Make it a goal to floss twice a week, then three times, until you’re flossing daily. If you haven’t flossed in awhile, don’t be alarmed if your mouth is sensitive at first. As you clean your teeth daily plaque will be removed and your gums and teeth will begin to get healthier, and soon, you won’t be able to wait until flossing time.
Think about flossing as a small goal to improve your long-term health. It takes just one minute each day, a small sacrifice that will lead to a large personal health investment in the future.
To floss:
Take about one foot of floss, and wrap it around your middle fingers until there is about two inches remaining in between your fingers. Use your forefinger to navigate the floss through your teeth. There should be less than one inch of floss in between your index fingers with which you are using to floss.