How Can Not Flossing Your Teeth Become Harmful to Your Oral Health?

Brushing your teeth daily is a good habit, but it’s not the gold standard of dental hygiene. Dental plaque typically accumulates between teeth in areas that a toothbrush cannot reach. You need to regularly floss your teeth to remove dental plaque and extricate the food particles lodged between your teeth. Oral health experts recommend flossing before brushing to improve your dental hygiene. If you allow the dental plaque to build up, it may expose you to different oral health diseases. If you’re looking for the best dental health provider, you can check out Brownstown Dental Care.

How to Floss

If you have never used dental floss before, the process can feel a bit weird. You should floss your teeth at least once every day using the following guideline.

  • Create a taut dental floss: depending on the length of your dental floss, wind a good portion of it around both of your middle fingers, and create a taut dental floss that you will use to stick into teeth and remove dental plaque with.
  • Be gentle: using the slightest pressure, drive the dental floss between your teeth and make sure that the floss is embracing one side of your tooth, and then apply back and forth motions to dismantle the dental plaque and food particles.
  • Repeat for different teeth: once you file a tooth until it grows smooth, move to another tooth and repeat the process, making sure that the spaces between teeth are smooth. If there are particles lodged between your teeth, just push the dental floss between the teeth and apply varied motions to get rid of the food particles.

Oral Health Issues Associated With Not Flossing

If you never floss at all, or you never floss as frequently as you should, it may lead to a build-up of bacteria in your teeth and leave you vulnerable to various oral health problems.

1. Gum Disease

This is an infection that causes deterioration of the gums and jaw bone. The leading cause of gum disease is poor hygiene. At the advanced stage, gum disease typically leads to loss of teeth and also increases your risk of developing heart and lung complications. The common form of gum disease is known as gingivitis and it causes the gums to swell and bleed.

2. Bad Breath

Bad breath is not one of those health problems that you can hide. It can make you extremely self-conscious when you are in social settings. Also, it can open you up to ridicule if you’re dealing with unkind people.

Bad breath may be a symptom of periodontitis but it can also arise on its own due to poor dental hygiene. When you fail to floss, you allow bacteria to accumulate between your teeth, and it can send up a displeasing odor. The situation is made significantly worse if your tongue is dirty.

3. Tooth Decay

Tooth decay is one of the leading dental problems in America. If you have this dental problem, a small or large portion of your teeth are damaged, and the major cause of the damage is usually indulgence in sugary foods and drinks.

If you indulge in biscuits, cakes, and bread, some food particles may get lodged between your teeth, and you may need to floss to eliminate them. But failure to eliminate these food particles leads to a build-up of bacteria and subsequent damage to the tooth.

4. Tooth Sensitivity

Tooth sensitivity is a dental disorder characterized by painful teeth, especially when pressure is applied to the tooth. This problem is typically caused by the wearing out of the enamel. When you fail to floss, and bacteria accumulate in your teeth, it can speed up the wearing out of the enamel, thus causing tooth sensitivity.

5. Bad Smile

Every human being wants to have a great smile. But if your teeth are holding loosely onto your gums, acting like they are going to fall at any second, and the gums looking bloodied, it can be difficult to maintain a great smile. If you avoid flossing, it typically leads to food particles accumulating between your teeth, thus creating a home for bacteria, which is responsible for teeth damage. The teeth also become discolored.

Tartar and plaque typically attract destructive bacteria. And so, if you allow these substances to accumulate, they cause damage to teeth and gums, thus leaving you vulnerable to dental diseases like gingivitis and periodontitis, and general health problems like cancer and diabetes. Thus, flossing every day is a tremendous investment for the health of your teeth and gums.