Why You Should Use Common Sense – At Least When It Comes to Oral Health

Why You Should Use Common Sense – At Least When It Comes to Oral Health

Common sense.  Does it seem to you that this has become a rare commodity nowadays?  Possibly, then, it is really uncommon sense that we should be talking about.

The latest example of an affront to logic – at least for me – lies in the latest media challenge to oral health.  This morning various news agencies including The New York Times, suggested that maybe flossing is really overrated.  Apparently, “officials” have never researched the effectiveness of regular flossing.

Now, millions of people are likely to jump on this as a justification for not flossing.  But, in reality, the new media sensation is probably not going to change very much at the end of the day.  Why?  Because I can confidently tell you – based on more than 25-years of personal experience – most people don’t floss anyway.  About all this latest “research” will promote is the possibility that some people will feel just a little less guilty about what others with any sense (common or uncommon) already understand is a pretty good idea.

But, it makes for good press.  Doesn’t it?

Just for the sake of argument, let’s assume that flossing doesn’t remove plaque.  Heck.  Some people fail to remove plaque with a toothbrush.  That doesn’t mean either fails to benefit the patient, if done properly.  I can think of several reasons why flossing helps, though:

  • Passing floss between the teeth sweeps out the contact point between them – meaning the points where they touch. That’s a source of about 30% of all tooth decay.  Your toothbrush typically doesn’t reach those areas, unless you have gaps between your teeth.  Floss does reach those areas.
  • Flossing stimulates blood flow in the gums. One of the body’s first-line mechanisms of defense is to increase blood flow to an affected area.  You are effectively helping your body do this in a controlled manner by flossing.
  • A number of the bacteria under your gums are anaerobic bacteria. That means they don’t grow in room air. So what is a person introducing into the gum pocket when they pull back their gums by flossing?  Could it be . . . air?  Is it possible that the oxygen in the air could kill some of those bacteria as well?

Think about it.

If we can set aside this newly created question of doubt for just a moment, I would propose that you ask yourself the following question:

“Have I ever flossed consistently?”

By this, I mean every day, and it would have to have included doing so for at least two weeks.

This question is particularly directed to someone if they ever had a gum problem like gingivitis or periodontal disease.  Sure, one needs to get rid of tartar and control bacteria as well, but for patients that make the effort to floss (and with only a few qualifications that I can think of), it is almost a sure bet that their gums got better as a result of the daily exercise. First of all, the gums probably bled less afterward.  Not in the beginning – to be sure – but after about two weeks of flossing every day, we typically see positive change.  Breath improves too. An overall sense of well-being is not out of the question either.

When it comes to flossing sporadically, I agree.  It doesn’t help much.  It’s kind of like exercising once or twice a month.  And let’s face it, that’s where most of the population lives when it comes to flossing — once in a blue moon.  Is regular exercise effective, though?  What does your common sense tell you?

Why would I hold on to this idea in the face of “new evidence”?  Well, I have seen flossing help too many times to just call it a coincidence.  Hard core scientists might say “Oh, well, that’s just anecdotal evidence.  It doesn’t stand up to real scientific scrutiny.”  OK.  Then survey practicing dentists.  Let’s see if I’m the only one with that observation and experience.  I doubt it.

I’m not saying flossing is the only thing you need to do to have healthy gums.  It isn’t.  Diet and good nutrition are paramount.  A healthy immune system doesn’t hurt either.  But for Pete’s sake, flossing is cheap, really not all that hard to do once you have practiced it for a while, and it can end up saving you a lot of money in the long run.  With health care costs being what they are, I can’t think of too many actions a person can take that bear as much fruit and keep money in their pockets.

But, if the media has just succeeded in making you feel better about not flossing, then OK. Bully for them. (Heaven knows, they do a top notch job spending most of their time getting people to feel less than great.)

And, I suppose there are other ways to handle tooth loss – which, by the way, happens a lot more from gum disease than tooth decay.

Don’t Bother Flossing

Don’t Bother Flossing

What?! Is the sky falling? What dentist would dare utter such blasphemy!

Stick with me for a moment. You may learn something about flossing.

Here are the facts as I see them after more than twenty years in dental practice:

Most patients don’t floss.
Most patients don’t like to floss.
Most patients won’t floss even if you explain the benefits of flossing at every checkup visit for ten years.
Most patients are convinced flossing makes their gums bleed and is uncomfortable to do.
Most patients will tell you they floss, but “probably not as much as I should.”
So really, why bother?

Another observation I have made about flossing regards what people think flossing is. I will sometimes hand a patient a piece of floss and ask them to show me how they floss.  Without exception, I have seen patients pass the floss between their teeth and then pop it back out.

That sounds right, doesn’t it? Special effects department please sound the buzzer. That’s not flossing.

Add to this the fact that most patients will only perform this routine once in a while. If you call that “flossing” I say don’t lose sleep over the fact that you are not flossing regularly. That can be effective at pulling food out from in between your teeth, though, so feel free to do so. But if that’s not flossing, just what is it, really?

Flossing is the action of taking a length of floss – either the conventional “string” kind or pre-threaded on a fork-like device – and then passing it between your teeth while holding it in a “C-shape” against the side of the tooth. You then take the floss and rub the edge of the tooth, sliding it all the way under the gum-line in an up and down motion. How often can one do this? After every meal would not be too much. But if people did this at least once a day, the average case would see dramatic results after an average of two weeks of daily flossing.

If you haven’t been flossing regularly here is what you can expect: your gums will bleed when you start to floss. It is also likely to be a little uncomfortable at first. But over time, the bleeding should stop. If you haven’t had a dental checkup and cleaning for a while, it is a good idea to do so this first. Flossing against existing tartar will be an unending battle. Once the teeth are clean, however, daily flossing will usually result in pink, firm and healthy gums that don’t bleed. Other benefits? Fresher breath and reduced inflammation – which also means a lowered chance of heart attack and stroke.

If you only floss once in a while, though, inflamed gums will likely never get up to a point where the occasional activity makes any difference. So, if you don’t make it a discipline, why bother? But if you would like healthy teeth and gums for a lifetime, start flossing today!