Do you floss?

[Moh 10]

As a child I neglected my teeth and by the time I was 18 I had lots of fillings and a gold crown already.
Then I joined the military.
Part of boot camp was classes on dental hygiene.

I have flossed an brushed every day since that class 33 years ago.

 

[Prana]

I do! I can''t stand it when my teeth are all clogged up. I also have these little toothpick plastic things that have a brush on the end that fit through my teeth for when I don''t have floss available. I love having clean teeth.

 

[monarch64]

Oh, yes. I can''t stand not to floss! I use a regular toothbrush, then floss, then waterpik. Dental hygiene takes up an extensive part of my day, ha ha!

 

[atroop711]

not as often as I should

 

[Luckyeshe]

I''m not an avid flosser, but I try to floss at least once a week if not 3x a week. I haven''t had any problems with my teeth though since I''ve been using a Sonicare for over 6 years. I had not gone in to see a dentist for about 4 years and last year was my first visit in a long time. I thought he was going to tell me that I had at least 3 cavities and that I was really bad or something. He came back and told me that my teeth were in excellent health and to keep up the good work. I was in shock to say the least! Now, I''ve been told by the hygeniest (probably spelled that wrong) that I do need to floss more often since my gums are "growing"...not quite sure what that means, but opposite of recessive gums and the only way to stop that is to floss. I''ve been flossing more often since then because before that...I didn''t floss....just used the Sonicare.

 

[Moh 10]

I was surprised to learn most tooth loss later in life is not from tooth decay.
If you don't floss daily the gums eventually loose their grip of the teeth.

Flossing keeps gums gripping the teeth tightly by removing plaque under the gum line.
If left alone plaque results in really gross growing pockets of yukieness between the gums and the teeth (under the gumline) that you don't want to even consider Googling about.
The gums gradually pull away from the teeth.
Teeth get loose and fall out, even perfect shiny white teeth with no cavities.

Since the effects of not flossing takes decades to show up people usually don't make the connection.

 

[LilyKat]

Yes, every night.

I didn''t until I was about 20 (although I have always brushed without fail twice a day), but once I started flossing and realised what HORRIBLENESS lay in that seemingly innocent gap between all the teeth... well, there was no going back.

 

[AprilBaby]

This thread makes THIS Dental Hygienist very

!

 

[Sharon101]

Date: 7/20/2009 1:38:32 PM
Author: Moh 10
I was surprised to learn most tooth loss later in life is not from tooth decay.
If you don''t floss daily the gums eventually loose their grip of the teeth.

Flossing keeps gums gripping the teeth tightly by removing plaque under the gum line.
If left alone plaque results in really gross growing pockets of yukieness between the gums and the teeth (under the gumline) that you don''t want to even consider Googling about.
The gums gradually pull away from the teeth.
Teeth get loose and fall out, even perfect shiny white teeth with no cavities.

Since the effects of not flossing takes decades to show up people usually don''t make the connection.

Hi, great topic!!!

Just want to point out that gums start receding for many factors including the aging process. You are correct that this is a huge problem and can lead to tooth loss and exposed nerves!

However, people dont want to be too aggressive with brushing or flossing as this can contribute to damaging the gums. A light hand is better than really digging in hard. Just thought I would mention this as I used to floss and brush hard thinking I was doing good, but my dentist told me this can actually weaken the gum line and cause gums to get damaged and to recede.

 

[Moh 10]

April Baby, what percentage of people floss daily?

edit, yes my dentist (of 25 years) also informed me I was flossing too aggressively and gave me flossing lessons.

 

[LilyKat]

Ooh, what is the right way to floss? I''ve just had my dental check-up, so won''t be seeing my dentist for a while now. I''ve never been told how it should be done.

 

[packrat]

I''m a very aggressive flosser and brusher, and I''ve been getting chewed out by my dentist for a couple years now. I try SO hard to be gentle, but pretty soon I''m scrubbing away. I''ve got issues w/my gums receding now, and she had to put desensitizer stuff on two spots when I was there a couple weeks ago. I''ve got nice teeth, she said, and all I need to do is put toothpaste on a cloth and rub them. And, my teeth are packed in my mouth like sardines, so that''s a problem too-even with the really thin floss, you have to crank hard to get in there.

 

[Abril]

Didn''t use to. But now I do it religiously.

 

[D&T]

Date: 7/20/2009 1:22:59 PM
Author: atroop711
not as often as I should

ditto here!

 

[mrscushion]

Not often enough, either

 

[Lorelei]

I floss every day.

I even alternate with thick and thin floss to mix things up a bit.

 

[dianne]

I floss every day...although I do it in the morning before I brush. I''ve noticed that others do this before bed. Is there a best time to do this...or just great that it gets done?

 

[tlh]

yup, twin line plaquers are the bomb!

 

[Richard Sherwood]

Well, I guess somebody''s gotta speak up for all the non-flossers lurking out there.

I hate flossing. For some reason it grosses me out, and I don''t have near the patience for it.

But I do water pik twice a day. My hygienist said that if you had to pick between flossing and water piking that water piking was more effective.

Is that correct? I think I remember reading it somewhere as well.

 

[ficklefaye]

i floss twice a day, FI just recently started flossing regularly after his last visit to the dentist

 

[Moh 10]

I found a 4 minute video with several good tips on proper flossing and brushing.
I don't know how to make it clickable.

My dentist insists I change my tooth brush 3 times a year because then they wear out they won't get a little under the gums anymore.
He provides them and they have a very small head to get into the back of the mouth better.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGmcAwMYEZ8

Richard I am no dentist but I try to pay attention to this topic and it is my opinion FWIW that water picks do not do as good of a job removing plaque below the gum line as flossing.

 

[LilyKat]

Thanks Moh! I will have a look and take notes

 

[Skippy123]

Date: 7/20/2009 5:12:47 PM
Author: Richard Sherwood
For some reason it grosses me out, and I don't have near the patience for it.

Richard, it grosses me out TOO!!! I don't like to see people floss or pick their teeth with toothpicks, super gross!

I DO floss daily though; the dentist scared me into it when I was about 5. haha

 

[Moh 10]

I worked with a guy who NEVER brushed or flossed.
You should have smelled his breath. GAG!

He said, "I tried flossing once but it grossed me out because afterwards it felt like there were spaces between my teeth."

 

[Snicklefritz]

Usually 5 times per week. I learned my lesson the same way you did, Moh.

 

[HollyS]

Do you floss?



Oh, Lord, yes. Absolutely. I don''t even want to discuss the nasty stuff that accumulates in there between brushings. Ick.

Dental assistant is one of those occupations I would NEVER do.

 

[Moh 10]

Date: 7/20/2009 5:05:37 PM
Author: dianne
I floss every day...although I do it in the morning before I brush. I've noticed that others do this before bed. Is there a best time to do this...or just great that it gets done?

I hear it takes 24 hours for the bacteria and food residue in our mouth to turn into plaque.
So if it is removed once every 24 hours you should be good to go.

BUT

The reason I like to do it right before going to bed (no eating after this) is this way my gums/teeth get 8 hours of being super clean every day.
That's a third of my life.

 

[gemgirl]

I absolutely floss! Having lots of crowns makes flossing a necessity. My teeth don''t feel comfortable unless I floss.

 

[musey]

Um, of COURSE!!! One of my college roommates didn't because, according to her, "nothing ever comes out on the floss anyway."

Right...

I floss at least once per day, but most days twice. Brush at least twice per day, but I use a very soft toothbrush so that I can brush more often if I'd like (it's actually a great dieting tool).

 

[musey]

Date: 7/20/2009 6:02:41 PM
Author: Moh 10
My dentist insists I change my tooth brush 3 times a year because then they wear out they won''t get a little under the gums anymore.

I''ve always been taught to change my brush monthly, is this overkill?