This four-part article series seeks to challenge the many excuses made by people for not flossing their teeth on a daily basis.
Welcome to Part 2 of this four-part series on the importance of flossing and just why the excuses you’ve used in the past for avoiding it can be debunked by new teeth in NJ specialists. As we explained in the first installment of the series, flossing is an integral part of keeping your teeth and gums free of the nasty bacteria that can cause cavities, tooth decay and gum inflammation. If you don’t floss, you’re leaving up to 35% of your dentition’s surfaces unclean, which could see you needing dental implants sooner rather than later!
We then tackled two common excuses patients make for not flossing their teeth regularly, or at all for that matter:
Flunking Flossing Excuse # 1: I don’t usually get food caught between my teeth so I find that I don’t really need to floss.
Flunking Flossing Excuse # 2: The floss I use keeps shredding and getting caught between my teeth. It’s annoying.
In this installment, with the help of dental implants specialists in Rutherford, we shall examine another two common excuses, beginning with...
Flunking Flossing Excuse # 3: No one ever showed me how to floss properly.
This is really hardly an excuse. Flossing is not rocket science… and if no one ever showed you how to use the lavatory properly, would you simply abstain from going? In any case, if you really don’t know how to floss and haven’t been able to figure it out, your dentist and oral hygienist are there to show you how to look after your teeth and gums properly. If asked, they would be more than happy to provide you with a little tutorial on how to floss. It might seem a little tricky in the beginning, but with practice, you’ll have all of your teeth squeaky clean within a minute or two.
Here is what new teeth specialists in NJ recommend:
1. Unwind an 18-inch section of floss and wrap the majority of this around the index finger. Grasp the other end of the floss with your available hand (left or right, depending upon what’s comfortable for you).
2. Use the hand grasping the floss to guide it between the teeth, using a gentle back-and-forth motion.
3. At the gum line, create a C-shape motion with the floss so that it follows the contour of the space between the teeth. This will ensure that food debris and bacteria that have accumulated here are dislodged and scooped up.
4. Holding the floss firmly, drag it up and down the sides of the teeth.
5. Repeat this process with each and every tooth, making sure to unwind or unspool fresh section of floss from around your finger as you do so.
6. “Never neglect the back molars,” emphasizes a dental implants specialist in Rutherford.“Tooth decay is most common towards the back of the mouth, where patients tend to neglect flossing and brushing.”
Flunking Flossing Excuse # 4: I’ve had dental work done, which makes it really difficult for me to floss.
There are all sorts of sophisticated cleaning tools that have been specially designed for patients with tricky dental work. If you struggle with straightforward floss, try using a floss threader, which looks like a small plastic “U” with a handle (see image above). The floss is strung between the ends of two arms of the threader and makes it super easy to control and get into position.Stay Tuned for Part 3
If your excuse hasn’t come yet, it just still might! Stay tuned for the third installment of this four-part article series on flossing, why it’s so important and how you can work around any possible difficulties.
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