Choosing the best dental floss

Here is a great article on choosing the right dental floss for you:

 

Gone are the days when choosing dental floss simply meant deciding on waxed or unwaxed. Today your choices include several different kinds of floss materials that vary in shape, thickness, texture, and coating. When you add multiple flavors to that mix, along with ease-of-use features like pre-measured floss and handling aids that hold floss, it can be hard to know what to buy.

 

Before you make your choice, think about why dentists recommend flossing.

The goal in using dental floss is to clean between the teeth, where brushes can’t reach. You floss to remove plaque, a sticky coating formed by active bacteria that are always present. These bacteria thrive on decaying food, so you also floss to remove any bits of food that get stuck between your teeth. If not removed, plaque leads to tartar formation, tooth decay, and gum disease.

Multiple studies have shown that there is no significant difference in the effectiveness of any particular type of dental floss when it comes to plaque removal and prevention of gingivitis (gum disease). So from that standpoint, it doesn’t matter if you choose waxed, unwaxed, shred-resistant, or woven floss. What matters is that you floss regularly; the best dental floss for your teeth is any kind you will use consistently.

 

The floss you’re most likely to use daily is the one that is easiest for you to manipulate and is the most comfortable in your mouth. Here are some flossing concerns and the features of available dental floss products that apply to each. Review them to help you decide what kind of floss is likely to suit you best.

 

1. Getting the right amount of floss.

 

You need about 18 inches of floss. If eyeballing the proper length challenges you, go for pre-cut or pre-measured floss. Pre-cut floss is packaged in 18-inch lengths instead of being spooled. Pre-measured floss comes out of the container in one long piece, but has short sections of a different color and texture to show you where you should break it off.

 

2. Wrapping the floss around your fingers.

 

With proper flossing technique you wrap most of the floss around the fingers of one hand to hold the excess as you use a length of four inches or so to clean your teeth. If you have soft or fragile skin, narrow nylon floss can press into the skin and cause discomfort, so choose wider floss or one made with softer material.

 

3. Getting the floss between your teeth and cleaning.

 

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