Flossing is an important part of keeping your teeth and gums healthy. Since it’s a necessary part of your oral hygiene routine, you want to make the most of it. Today, we wanted to review a few suggestions on how you can improve your flossing routine. By applying these tips, we’re sure you’ll keep your smile in excellent shape for years to come:

  • Choose the Right Type of Floss

The kind of floss you use can make a big difference. Choose a floss that has the ADA seal of approval. They evaluate dental products for their safety and effectiveness. You can trust their recommendations. Purchase a floss from their list so that you can have the most successful results. 

  • Floss at Least Once a Day

Flossing is a routine that many people skip. That’s why you want to make it a point to floss at least once a day as recommended by the ADA. Ideally, you should floss after every meal and once before bed. Food stuck between your teeth can lead to oral health problems. Staying on top of that can give you strong oral health.

  • Floss at the Ideal Time

If you only floss once daily, you should do it at the optimal time. Floss as close to bedtime as possible, making sure you brush after. If you brush before you floss, you don’t clean away the food grime and bacteria you picked up. That’s why brushing should be the last thing you do before bed, not flossing.

  • Perform the Right Technique

Wind about 18 inches of floss around each middle finger, leaving 2-3 inches of floss to work with. Glide floss between each tooth gently, conforming the floss to the sides of each tooth. Make sure you gently floss near your gumline. Take your time and don’t force the floss. Pay attention to your back teeth. When flossing, it’s easy to focus only on the front and visible teeth.

  • Don’t reuse your floss.

While this may sound obvious, you don’t want to reuse your floss. Use a fresh thread of floss for each tooth. Otherwise, you are forcing germs into spaces between your teeth. That’s why you want to be careful of using floss picks because you are reusing that same section of floss each time.

Want more personalized tips? Make sure you schedule a dental checkup. Call Doering Family Dental in Tampa, FL today at 813-590-6649 or schedule online.