Master The Skills of Flossing for a Stunning Smile
Flossing is often thought of as a tedious, daunting, and monotonous activity. But it doesn’t have to be! The challenge is that the activity of flossing doesn’t immediately appeal to the psychology of the human need for instant reward and gratification — but rather, it’s more of a long term investment. To really see results garnered by flossing, you have to make flossing a habit, often over weeks or months.
If you do it right, however, your dentist visits will be all the more pleasant, your gums will be less sensitive, have less bleeding, and your dentist or hygienist might even compliment you on your pearly whites and healthy gums. How is that for a reward?
So next time you think of skipping your nightly floss sesh, try to remember the fact that your reward will be reaped over the long term, in the form of healthy teeth and gums, less dental work, and a happy healthy smile.
Here are some tools to get you started:
1. Good Old Standard String Floss
String floss is the standard in most households, and can be found in most drugstores in many varieties of textures, thickness, and even flavors. You can pick from thinner string if you have tight spacing between your teeth, or thicker floss if you prefer. There are interesting flavors such as mint —although you probably won’t taste much of the flavor given the string is going in between your teeth. String floss is a good go-to, and should be in everyone’s tooth-care arsenal, purse, bag, or carry-on. String floss typically comes in small containers, and can easily be thrown into your bag for easy reach, where you can pull it out when in the restroom for a quick tidy-up of your teeth. You should be checking anyway for remnants of your meal in your smile before you get on with the rest of your day.
2. Flossers or Floss Picks
Floss picks can be a great alternative to regular string floss especially if you have a hard time grasping the string, and having it taught enough to slide in between your teeth, particularly in tight spaces. Floss picks can also be an excellent option if you have a harder time reaching the back teeth with regular floss. The picks come in varieties where they have various angles of the head where the floss is threaded, and you can choose from one that fits your needs. A good idea is to test out a few different types and see which ones allow for the optimal reach of all teeth so that you can effectively angle them and clean along the gum line. In addition to being a fantastic alternative to traditional floss, these picks also come with a tip on the end which you can use to pick plaque in areas where floss doesn’t get it all, such as around the bottom front of the teeth, where you might miss even with the toothbrush. The pick ends are particularly helpful with cleaning around crowns or fillings where plaque can build up without notice. It’s a good idea to keep some in your medicine cabinet as a tool for these instances.
3. Power Flosser
A really cool tool for those who like gadgets is the WaterPik Power Flosser. This is a handheld tool about the size of a large toothbrush, and it comes with refillable tips that function as the flossers. The flosser runs on a AA battery, which can be a rechargeable one. The way this flosser works is by positioning the flossing tip in the space between your tooth and gumline, pressing the button on the handle, the tip begins to vibrate, and you move the tip up and down your tooth and gum line. This is easy to do at the sink, as you can rinse off any plaque that accumulates on the tip as you move through cleaning all your teeth. When you’re done you simply remove and discard the tip, and leave the handle in your cabinet for the next day. This flosser is also fantastic for cleaning around braces, bridgework, and crowns, and is easy to travel with, as it’s about the size of a toothbrush. It also massages your gums, strengthening them as it cleans.
4. Specialty Toothbrush
Toothbrushes should not be overlooked when following a skilled flossing routine. Toothbrushes such as GUM Brand’s specialty Deep Clean Toothbrush will ensure you’re reaching way deep into crevices when you brush, where plaque builds up. You’ll be able to brush away bacteria even if floss missed it. Look for a toothbrush that has fine bristle ends so that they can reach deep into the crevices between gums and teeth, as well as farther between the teeth, to remove the disease-causing plaque. The GUM brush also has an angled handle helping you brush at the optimal 45-degree angle, the optimal position for plaque from the crevices of the teeth and gums.
5. Water Flosser
The water flosser is not for everyone, but should be considered in specific situations. The water flosser works by pointing the handle in between the teeth and gums, and flowing a stream of water from the reservoir of the flosser in order to clean out plaque and food debris from in between the teeth via the power of water pressure. This can be very useful in certain situations such as when wearing braces, as it could be tough to get food particles out from in between the brackets using traditional flossing methods. In every day scenarios however, if water flossing is your preferred method, you need to exercise caution when using it. The powerful jet stream of water could over time erode the gum line if not angled properly, and could contribute to sensitivity of the teeth. Exercise proper care when opting for the water floss method.
