How Should Dental Floss be Used?

What Should We Pay Attention When Using Dental Floss?

Most caries and periodontal diseases start between teeth. Although brushing is important, the bristles of the brush cannot reach between your teeth. To keep your gums and teeth healthy, you should clean the plaque between your teeth at least once a day. For this reason, your dentist recommends using dental floss.

Tell your dentist if your teeth are too tight for flossing, or if the floss is breaking. Pull the floss firmly and slide it up to the gum to form a C shape. Clean the interface of the tooth not only with lateral movements, but also up and down and back and forth.

When all the plaques are cleaned, the floss will make a squeaking sound when rubbed against your teeth. Then move the floss towards your other tooth and repeat the same process. Clean the edges of all your teeth using a clean piece of floss each time.

If you have difficulty reaching some tooth spaces in your mouth, you can use a dental floss fork. If your gums are infected, they will bleed while using dental floss. This is expected if you have just started using dental floss. Bleeding will stop with regular use of dental floss after about a week.

Most caries and periodontal diseases start between the teeth and your toothbrush cannot reach them. That's why you should floss regularly.

* Article is taken from TDB (Turkish Dental Association).