SEP 29, 2020 POSTED BY: ATUL SHASTRY
We all know that flossing is incredibly important, but with so many articles out there today about flossing, what facts about flossing are true and which ones aren’t? In today’s post we’ll get in between the teeth to unravel this mystery together.
Most Americans admit to using other items to floss their teeth other than dental floss — True! In a recent study that was done by the ADA, they surveyed people who admitted to using unconventional objects for flossing their teeth. These objects included fingernails (61 percent), folder paper or cards (40 percent), cutlery (21 percent), safety pins (14 percent) and even strands of hair (7%)🤢 ← totally a judgement free zone
65% of Americans noted that they floss daily — False! Only 30% of Americans admit to flossing daily, 37% admit to flossing less than daily and roughly 33% of Americans admit to never flossing. 😳
The largest reason people report that they don’t floss is because it’s too time consuming — True! In the study conducted by the ADA, they found that over 55% of the people surveyed admitted that flossing is too time consuming ⏱️
Flossing can help to prevent heart disease — True! A recent study shows people with periodontal disease are almost twice as likely to have heart disease. So flossing is good for the heart 💓. Flossing also helps to prevent other diseases such as diabetes, Alzheimer’s and more.
It is unnecessary to floss if you don’t have cavities — False! Even if you don’t have cavities, flossing helps to prevent against gum diseases such as gingivitis.
Over flossing is bad for your teeth — Believe it or not this one is true too! If you floss more than once per day, serious damage can occur to your gum tissue, but it’s not only how often you floss that can cause problems. If you floss too vigorously or apply too much pressure on the gums, the gums can bleed and become painful. Eventually, over-flossing can destroy the gum line, which exposes more of the teeth’s root, eventually causing tooth decay and cavities. Moral of the story don’t floss too hard.