Maintaining good oral hygiene: do I need to floss?

The British Dental Health Foundation has reported that only 21% of UK adults use dental floss regularly. The traditional view on maintaining good oral hygiene is brushing your teeth twice a day. This view is now outdated. So what else can you be doing to ensure your teeth and gums are healthy?

It is reported that an array of bizarre objects have been used to remove trapped food including, earrings, business cards, matchsticks and screwdrivers. Obviously, it goes with out saying that dentists will urge you to step away from the tool box or jewellery box when struggling to remove a pesky bit of trapped food and instead reach for dental floss to assist you. However, flossing your teeth is not just for dislodging trapped food between your teeth.

Flossing your teeth can also help to prevent gum disease and tooth decay by removing the pieces of food and plaque that build up between your teeth and at the gum line. It also helps to reduce bad breath by removing food debris from the mouth.

If dental flossing is something that you have yet to incorporate into your dental hygiene routine then it is recommended that you seek advice from your dentist. The dental market has seen an influx of dental floss products in recent years and the oral hygiene aisle at your local pharmacy may seem quite overwhelming.

Your dentist will be able to provide you with advice on what type of floss is appropriate for your dentition, and what technique you should be using to most effectively keep your teeth clean and to ensure you are not causing unnecessary damage to your teeth and gums.

Adopting a good oral hygiene routine is critical. If a person’s oral health is not maintained a person can experience problems such as:

– Tooth decay

– Periodontal disease

– Recurrent infections

– Eventual tooth loss.

If you think you could improve your oral hygienic routine then we would recommended you seek advice from your dentist.

Our experience

It is important that dentists assist patients in maintaining good oral health and those dentists provide adequate treatment to avoid the numerous problems that can follow from suffering from poor oral health.

The Dental Negligence Team  have settled many cases whereby dentists have failed to provide adequate treatment or have failed to detect decay. Please see our recent cases section, which detail the types of cases that we have settled for our clients.

If you have suffered from dental problems which were not diagnosed by your dentist, please contact the Dental Negligence Team who will be happy to assist and advise on the prospects of bringing a dental negligence claim.