5 Tips To Help You Floss Your Teeth Correctly And Effectively

Flossing is an often forgotten step while taking care of dental hygiene. It is usually a cautionary step taken to keep and reduce the number of food particles that are stuck even after eating and brushing your teeth. Because though the toothbrush is a useful tool it is sometimes large and cannot possibly reach all parts of the mouth equally, and thus some food particles always remain. 

Flossing is a beneficial and vital method of the routine dental hygiene that one should follow. If one wants a definition of Flossing, it can be referred to as the use of a waxed or unwaxed synthetic thread to dislodge plaque, foods, and microbes from the lateral borders of teeth. 

Regular flossing reduces halitosis and decreases the incidence of caries and periodontal disease. Given below is a list of 5 useful tips to help you floss correctly. 

Right Technique Of Flossing Teeth

1. Choosing The Best One 

With a wide variety of floss available in the market, one can be spoilt for choice, but one should select the correct one based on their teeth. Floss comes in two basic forms: 

Nylon (multifilament) Floss - It is made up of multiple nylon strands. It is stringy and possible to break apart. 

PTFE Floss - It comprises a single thread or strand. It slides in between the tightest of spaces. If one has wider spaces between their teeth, then tape floss works best. Single filament floss as the name suggests is very thin and help get in the gaps.

2. The Time That Is Taken To Floss 

The time that one uses for flossing also makes a major difference. Usually, the ideal lengths are as follows. Take an 18-inch to 24-inch section of a floss and wrap its ends around your middle fingers. It is always advisable to floss your teeth after brushing your teeth as the brushing helps in removing initial food particles that are stuck in the mouth then later the flossing can help remove where the brush couldn't reach. 

3. Posture Matters 

There is a correct way of holding the floss and using it, otherwise, if you are doing it wrong, then that may be harmful in the long term for your dental hygiene. The way to go is to hold the floss between the thumbs and forefingers of both hands. Keeping it in mind; care should be taken so that you leave about 7- 10 cm of the floss exposed. This area of the floss is the one that you will use for flossing. After you wrap the floss around your index fingers, you can grab it with your index fingers and thumbs and floss away towards perfection and cleanliness. 

4. Technique 

The technique that one uses to floss their teeth is something to be kept in mind. The floss is a fragile thread-like structure made of sets of string that are joined together, and if used in a wrong way, it can cause harm to the person. Therefore, one should gently curve the floss around the base of each tooth smoothly and slowly taking care that this is done for every tooth, making sure you go beneath the gum line. 

Never be harsh or snap or force the floss, as this may cut or bruise delicate gum tissue and this may result in bleeding and damage them. Keep it gentle, or else a tool used to clean your teeth can cause harm to your teeth instead.  

5. Procedure 

The procedure mentioned above should be followed regularly and not merely for a bunch of teeth but all of the teeth regularly. Do not wrap the floss around the gum of two different teeth as this will make the process less precise, and you'll be more likely to hurt your gums, which is something that should be avoided in all cases. 

Clean floss can be acquired by unraveling the extra floss that is wrapped around the index finger. Sometimes when people start flossing their gums start bleeding this should not be taken as a deterrent to stop flossing, but that they have not flossed actively before and it is noticed that when flossing becomes a regular thing the bleeding and swelling decreases. 

Flossing as a procedure has benefits like removing plaque and dirt in the mouth that brushing alone can't remove. A famous Wellington Dentist, Dr. Sam Sadati, recommends flossing for good dental hygiene. Therefore, take good care of your oral health and live a better life.