ORAL HYGIENE INSTRUCTIONS UPDATED: FLOSS IS THE BOSS: LAKE LANIER SMILES, AN AFFORDABLE BUFORD DENTAL CARE

ORAL HYGIENE INSTRUCTIONS UPDATED

"FLOSS IS THE BOSS"

By

Lake Lanier Smiles, Buford Affordable Dentist

Every dentist or hygienist asks the same question every time they see a patient on a recall visit/ cleaning visit is "Do you floss every day?"  Or "have you been flossing everyday". Unfortunately only a few patients do floss, it is the most recommended method of inter proximal (in between teeth) cleaning. Flossing is the most common Benchmark of a patient’s dedication to Oral Hygiene.

Brush and Floss is the mantra of the dental professionals to all the patients but the effectiveness of the regular manual brush and thread floss is known to be ineffective in certain situations. Every dentist hands over a "goody Bag" with a brush, floss and a rinse without customizing to the patient’s needs. We at Lake Lanier Smiles recommend what’s best for your specific oral health condition.

A manual toothbrush is not an effective plaque removal instrument. We highly recommend an electric toothbrush because it's 10 times more effective than a manual brush. An electric toothbrush can move thousands of time in a minute and on the other hand manual toothbrush can only move hundreds of times. Lake Lanier Smiles recommends Oral-B and Sonicare powered tooth brushes.

A floss is an effective tool to mechanically remove the food debris and plaque when used properly. But it is ineffective on a concave surface which will be seen on roots of teeth where there is receding gums. This is especially true in the back teeth. In these instances a proxy brush would be more effective. Also it is better to use a waterpik water flosser or an air flossers than a thread floss to remove the pathogenic bacterial biofilm.

Floss is the difficult thing to get people to do of the two word mantra "brush and floss". People don't know the importance of flossing because they believe they brush twice a day and rinse with a mouthwash which will replace the flossing. But that's not enough, flossing removes the plaque in between the teeth where brush cannot reach and even mouthwash cannot reach.

Most people also say that flossing is cumbersome and hate it. I advise my patients to switch to water flosser or air flosser which is so easy and effective then a thread flossing. Some patients complain that flossing makes their gums bleed. I explain my patients that gums bleed because they are unhealthy due to infection and bacteria. Regular teeth cleaning at the dental office with regular Oral hygiene at home which includes flossing will make gums healthy and will not have any bleeding.

Other patients don't floss with an excuse that food never gets stuck in between my teeth. But we are not using floss to remove the food only but mainly to remove the plaque. One more reason some patients tell us is that they don't know how to floss. The team of dental professionals at Lake Lanier Smiles including the Hygienist, Doctor and Dental Assistant are here to teach you the proper way of flossing.

Some patients state that they don't have enough time or forget to floss. The best solution is to floss first and brush second that way you cannot forget. It only takes two minutes to floss and I don't believe that we don't have time for that when we know how important it is to floss. The key is to get time whatever convenient for you and I would suggest to store floss close to your brush. Most serious reason some patients say is that the gums hurt when they floss. It hurts because the gums have a disease called gingivitis or periodontitis. Please visit the dentists of Lake Lanier Smiles, an affordable dental care in Buford. We have special prices for regular cleanings and deep cleanings.

If you have any questions about your Oral Health or to make an appointment to see us, Call us at 770-831-0559 or visit us at WWW.LAKELANIERSMILES.COM for Valuable Coupons and Specials. Our prices are 30-50 % Off Regular Prices. Call Us before Noon and we will see you the Same Day. We accept most insurances. We are conveniently located just off I-985 at 4965 Lanier Islands Parkway, Suite 105, Buford, Ga- 30418. LAKE LANIER SMILES provides Affordable dental care with outstanding customer service to patients in Buford, Sugar Hill, Suwanee, Cumming, Flowery Branch and surrounding areas.