You can Floss Dance, after you actually Floss

Written by DDS Miami

Flossing your teeth is crucial to a healthy and happy smile. Many of us know flossing is important that’s exactly why sometimes we’ll floss with toothpicks, hair strands, folder piece of paper and other types of objects. We know we should floss, but you cannot just floss with anything. Some of us floss with yarns, and other strange household objects. According to recent U.S. survey, adults attempted to remove food from between their teeth using fingernails (61%), folded paper or cards (40%), cutlery such as a fork, knife, or spoon (21%), safety pins (14%) or strands of hair (7%).(1).  Our teeth require a certain type of care to maintain a healthy smile. Floss, dental picks or water flossing are the only tools that should be used for flossing. Objects like folded cards and eating utensils are not tools for flossing. Flossing prevents food from getting stuck in your teeth and creating plaque, bad breath and gum sensitivity. According to the American Dental Association, “[you should be] cleaning between your teeth daily with an interdental cleaner (like floss).”(2). While flossing is critical for your overall oral health, when is the best time to floss? After brushing or before? At night or in the morning? The American Dental Association responds like Nike, “[Just Do It] As long as you do a thorough job, it doesn’t matter when.”(3). After a long day of work, it’s nice to go home, dedicate some time to flossing and go to sleep with clean teeth. Or Vice Versa. After a long night of rest, it is pleasant to wake up with clean teeth and spend the day showing off a healthy smile. The key message is make sure to floss at least once a day. Include flossing in those “self-love” days, or in your makeup routine. Incorporate flossing like you do sports training. It’s only a few minutes a day to keep plaque away. If you do not floss, then plaque can become tartar and only your dentist can remove tartar (4). Once you get into the habit of flossing everyday, you can celebrate by doing the floss dance. The last question you may be asking is how do I properly floss? Check out this video from the American Dental Association to be sure you’re flossing correctly. Happy Flossing!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=HhdoPXNKNm4

Created 06/29/2018