Waterpiks?

Nohbody8

I've recently resolved to start getting the various aspects of my life I've allowed to lay fallow over the years back in order. Fortunately, I have the money, for once, to accomplish this goal. Today I went to the store on a mission to revamp my dental hygiene routine. On top of purchasing almost obsessively specific toothpastes and mouth washes, I also purchased an Oral B Professional Care 8850 powered toothbrush so "I can brush like a dentist". As I was perusing all of the products available to me, I came across some very reasonably priced ($15) waterpiks.

I've never really been able to floss for more than a few days before my gums swelled up in protest, denying me what little access to the meager amount of space I had between each tooth to work with in the first place. Dentists have always recommended I use Glide dental floss but it seemed to cut me worse 'cause it WAS thinner and able to slice my gums a little bit each time I used it. Have I just been flossing wrong? Needless to say I have classified flossing in the fool's errand category for years with no noticable dental problems.

My question is should I look into a waterpik system? Has anyone used one? Do I even need to worry about flossing/waterpik-ing since my new brushing routine is a whitening pre-brush mouthwash, actually brushing my teeth with the powered toothbrush, and then another mouthwash to keep me minty fresh all day long? Thanks for any input.

Dark Moon

Regarding flossing: You'll bleed initially if you haven't flossed in a long time/have never flossed, but if you continue to do it for a while you'll stop bleeding every time you floss. How long have you tried flossing for before you ruled it out as being too hard?

And yes, you do still need to floss regardless of the type of brushing you're doing.

Nohbody8

I would floss for a couple of days and then brushing would even be too painful. Thinking I needed brushing more, I would ditch flossing and just stick with brushing. I never knew it would get better if I just stuck with it. Is floss better than a waterpik 'cause I'd rather skip the bleeding gums part if I get the same result from a good waterpik?

onceling

I have an $80 waterpik. I do not feel it gives the same results as flossing. I only bought it because of wisdom teeth removals. It's very good at getting compacted food out of sensitive areas held together with stitches but I have played around with it in between my teeth.

The strongest nozzle stings quite a lot and doesn't really do much for the inbetween bits.

Waterpik is better than nothing, but I would still vote for floss.

Fats

I think you may be going overboard on the mouthwash -- stuff with high alcohol content can cause irritation with little in the way of proven benefits.

I would go to your dentist and ask to be shown how to floss, it's possible you're doing something funky. Like Dark Moon said, the bleeding should subside if you keep at it. I don't think the Waterpik has sufficient water pressure to replace real floss.

Nohbody8 wrote:

Needless to say I have classified flossing in the fool's errand category for years with no noticable dental problems.

Generally, not flossing leads to problems far, far down the road.

EggyToast

The thing with floss is that many people do it wrong. They just jam it between their teeth and rub it along their gums. Floss is to remove bad stuff from along the side of your teeth, so what you should really do is slide it in between your teeth and rub it along side each tooth, and gently against the gum.

And yes, it will cause some discomfort for the first time doing it, probably for a week or so. For example, my bottom teeth don't have any sensitivity to flossing because I have food traps, so not only does foot always get stuck there but I have to floss there almost daily. My upper teeth, though, are much closer together, and less food gets up there. Consequently, I floss up there less, and when I do floss it's more sensitive (and my wife says it makes my breath smell bad). So I've been trying to get in the habit of flossing up there more, in order to build up a stronger resistance. It's been coming along nicely, with less bloody gums, less stinky gum smell, and a more pleasant feeling.

But yeah, it's much better to get in the habit of flossing. It's not only more effective, but portable. I actually keep a spool of floss at work so I can do it there after work, instead of suffering after lunch if something's stuck.

About mouthwash, both of my most recent 2 dentists will happily state that mouthwashing essentially does nothing but make your mouth minty. A lot of people really like that feeling, and it does make your breath better for a short while, but it doesn't do anything for dental hygiene according to them. So I gave it up and brush better instead.

Nohbody8

Fats wrote: »

I think you may be going overboard on the mouthwash -- stuff with high alcohol content can cause irritation with little in the way of proven benefits.

They are all alcohol free.

Nohbody8

Swapped out the 8000 series I just purchased with an Oral-B Triumph. Should that do the trick as far as flossing goes?

Dark Moon

Nohbody8 wrote: »

Swapped out the 8000 series I just purchased with an Oral-B Triumph. Should that do the trick as far as flossing goes?

No. You cannot do with a brush what you can with a piece of floss.

Enki

Dark Moon wrote: »

No. You cannot do with a brush what you can with a piece of floss.

completely agree. What i do, since I don't floss that often, and my gums bleed just about every time, I only floss every few days. That way, my gums are able to heal completely (they never get really bad, just bleed) so I'm not continually damaging them.

I would suggest trying that, since doing it every day right off the bat will be a bit painful.

Fireflash

As far as I know the waterpik is an alternative to the toothbrush, not the floss. Bleeding gums means your gums aren't healthy. You should still floss, eventually your gums will stop bleeding.

You should also talk to a dentist, they can give you a prescription for a medicinal mouthwash to help your gums get better.

Nohbody8

Perhaps the new power brush will make my gums healthy enough (which it claims possible) to start flossing again.

Dark Moon

Perhaps it will, but it might not. And having lots of food building up between your teeth is not helping your gums at all in the interim. I second the "talk to your dentist" suggestion - if your flossing technique is proper (you're rubbing the sides of your teeth and rarely touching the gums at all) and you're still damaging your gums enough to cause pain, all is not right in gingiva-land.

Nohbody8

The main problem is that it requires so much force to get the floss between my close-set teeth that it's really difficult to keep from accidentally pushing straight down into my gums.

Dark Moon

The way I do it with tight teeth is that I essentially wiggle it in. Vigorous back and forth motions and slight pressure will do the job in a much more gradual way than simply lining the floss up and applying so much force that it gets in between the teeth and then garrotes your gumline. It takes a big longer to floss but you don't cause major trauma to your mouth while doing it. Or are you already flossing in this fashion?

Nohbody8

I've thought about trying it that way but it seemed too time consuming. Seeing as how I'm revamping a lot of my habits lately, I'll give it another shot.

EggyToast

Just remember that floss is to get the buildup off the sides of your teeth, so wiggling is exactly what you should be doing.

I have to use some high quality tape floss (Glide) since I have a few spots that shred floss. Even my dentist has a hard time getting floss in those spots. But yes, take a little more time. A thorough, gentle floss only takes about 5 minutes or less.

I do find that an electric toothbrush works your gums better, if only because it's vibrating the entire time.

NightDragon

Be sure not to use a large "sawing" motion when getting the floss between your teeth. You should be moving the floss back and forth *very* slightly, just enough to help it wedge itself between your teeth. No huge sweeping sawing motions required.

You also seem very caught up on the names and claims of things. If you really want excellent stuff, sometimes it's best to check online and look at customer reviews. Something that claims excellence, and is expensive, may actually be beaten out by something much cheaper. Just a thought.

Szechuanosaurus

Go to your dentist or hygienist and ask them to show you how to floss. You need to 'saw' it in between the teeth right down to the gum then pull it against one of your teeth and slide it back out, then repeat only sliding it off the other tooth this time.

Bleeding is a sign of gum disease, not just weak gums. If you bleed when you floss, keep flossing. The only way the bleeding will stop is if you clean out your gums often enough for them to heal without infection. You will have to replace the floss you are using a lot to being with as well, because when the gum bleeds on to it, you need to replace it to avoid contaminating the gums between the next set of teeth.

I have tightly packed teeth as well and find standard floss impossible to use. My dentist gave me these disposable plastic forks that have a small amount of floss suspended between two prongs - it makes it a lot easier to reach in and get between the teeth.

An electric toothbrush alone won't do the job of proper flossing, especially if your teeth are tightly packed. You need to brush, floss and then rinse with mouthwash. The mouthwash is equally as important because especially to begin with, your gums are going to bleed and you need to rinse that to prevent them getting re-infected or the infections spreading.


Frankly, it's a fucking chore. Role on dentures.