It is no secret that most people don’t like flossing. I used to find it annoying as well. I cannot stress enough the importance of removing plaque between teeth because that is what usually leads to most dental problems. There are two events that made me become diligent about flossing. The first event was my emergency visit to the dentist while I was in college. I ended up getting a root canal and a crown, and the dentist that treated me told me to prevent future dental problems from happening with daily thorough flossing. Several years went by without me following the dentist’s home care instructions and then I got to dental school. One day I had an in-class exercise where each student was to examine his/her own oral hygiene with a pink disclosing tablet. After brushing, one chews a pink disclosing tablet and then rinses to see how much pink dye remains on the teeth. The lack of residual pink dye indicates the lack of plaque.
I had classmates who had no residual pink dye after rinsing their mouths. What happened to me? Everyone could see pink dye all over my teeth. It was one of the most embarrassing moments of my life! Since that embarrassing experience, I have religiously brushed and flossed my teeth. I have not had any dental problems since then. Please remember that disease prevention saves you time and money while fixing things costs both of those.
Using Waterpik products is certainly better than not using any interproximal (in-between) cleaners. I highly recommend those products to geriatric patients who may have difficulty flossing due to their reduced manual dexterity. Flossing, though, is what I recommend to most people. One thing to note is that it has to be done right. Otherwise, gunk will remain between teeth and cause issues. I will soon post a video on how to floss correctly.
