Floss With Water
Using oral irrigators and water flossers such as Waterpik products can help clean even more efficiently than traditional floss.¹ Because they are easy to use, they also help patients clean around devices like braces, bridges or who have dexterity problems.
Water flossers work by delivering a steady stream of water, which flushes away plaque biofilm. They can reach several millimeters under the gumline to remove periodontal disease bacteria, where normal floss can only reach down 2 or 3 millimeters. These pockets can often be 5-7mm deep, so it is extremely important to keep them clean in order to reverse the disease process. Waterpiks can reach into these deep pockets, and patients can know that they are doing absolutely everything possible to help treat these hard to reach areas.
While they do take a little getting used to, water flossers are a wonderful investment for people concerned with their oral health. Depending on the model, the temperature and pressure of the water stream can be controlled. Some designs also allow for mixtures of mouth rinses to be added into the reservoir.
A toothbrush and floss will never reach the areas that a water flosser can. By cleansing around every tooth with water floss, oral hygiene, bleeding gums and bad breath can all be addressed. They are also easier to comply with their use, so you are more likely to use a water flosser on a daily basis than you are to pick up a spool of floss every day. Once you see the results, you’ll never go back to floss again.
Reference: 1. Rosema NA, Hennequin-Hoenderdos NL, Berchier CE, Slot DE, Lyle DM, van der Weijden GA.; The effect of different interdental cleaning devices on gingival bleeding.; J Int Acad Periodontol. 2011 Jan;13(1):2-10.
