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Federal health expert drop flossing from health guidelines

arstechnica.com

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Re: Federal health expert drop flossing from health guidelines

#61

Post by mountaineer22 »

leaveyou wrote: post #10

For me the water flossers (oral jet irrigators) are the best solution yet. I was never able to floss correctly with a wire, especially between the teeth in the back row but then my dentist told me about "the jet thing from amazon" and I wish I had it a lot earlier because it's so easy to use and quite efficient. (Just don't jet your gums with the highest power; it can hurt and make your gums bleed)

My wife recently purchased a battery-powered Waterpik and is obsessed with the thing (it works in the shower, too):

http://amzn.to/2axkvkK

She had been compulsively flossing, but this device has reduced that desire.

Re: Federal health expert drop flossing from health guidelines

#62

Post by JoshGlazebrook »

bbayles wrote: post #52
adrianN wrote: post #2

I wonder why they don't fund proper studies. Maybe because the effect is too obvious to question? My oral hygienist can tell whether I floss regularly or not, so there must be an observable difference in plaque buildup. Subjectively my gums also feel better and bleed less when I floss regularly.

I've tested a few times - if I floss the day before and day of I don't get the "floss more!" lecture.

It really depends. If the plaque is left too long it will harden and turn into tartar (calculus), which can't be easily removed with just floss.

Re: Federal health expert drop flossing from health guidelines

#63

Post by HelloMcFly »

whack wrote: post #48
adrianN wrote: post #2

I wonder why they don't fund proper studies. Maybe because the effect is too obvious to question? My oral hygienist can tell whether I floss regularly or not, so there must be an observable difference in plaque buildup. Subjectively my gums also feel better and bleed less when I floss regularly.

Except that studies have now shown that the effect is not obvious at all. "Since doctors began saying that a string-based tooth scrapping was good for oral health, a handful of studies have been conducted. However, they all fall far short of what’s needed to make a convincing argument. A 2011 review of a dozen randomized controlled studies concluded that, “Overall there is weak, very unreliable evidence which suggest…

Honestly, I only need myself as evidence to the personal benefit; I have nothing to say about the generalizability of my results.

I've always had bad, painful dentist visits until my mid-20s. They were quite bloody. Since I started flossing, my dental visits are not painful, and my gums never bleed. When they do the gum measurements, I now get 2s and 3s instead of 4s and 5s.

The only change I made was flossing. I don't argue that it reduces plaque or has all of these life-changing benefits, but it stops my gums from bleeding and makes dentist trips a breeze. That's enough for me. Maybe others won't get the same benefit.

Re: Federal health expert drop flossing from health guidelines

#65

Post by nextos »

mrweasel wrote: post #31
adrianN wrote: post #2

I wonder why they don't fund proper studies. Maybe because the effect is too obvious to question? My oral hygienist can tell whether I floss regularly or not, so there must be an observable difference in plaque buildup. Subjectively my gums also feel better and bleed less when I floss regularly.

For years my oral hygienist kept telling me to a get an electric toothbrush. When I finally got one, I didn't tell her, but I never hear the "get an electric tooth brush" again. It was the same with flossing. When I started flossing I didn't say anything, and she hasn't commented that I need to floss since.

There's a ton of evidence in the literature supporting that gum disease and cavities are, obviously, a bacterial issue.

Flossing is an obvious way to disrupt pathogenic bacterial colonies by abrasion. I think irrigation is much better, as it reaches deep pockets below gums. But it doesn't replace flossing entirely.

Those two, coupled with regular brushing of teeth, gum and tongue, plus oral probiotics should keep issues at bay.

In particular, my experience with probiotics is that tartar calculus fell apart within a few months. I have never had a cavity.

Sadly most dentists don't place too much emphasis on these as it goes against their business model: drill, fill and bill.

Re: Federal health expert drop flossing from health guidelines

#66

Post by ronjouch »

nextos wrote: post #65
mrweasel wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For years my oral hygienist kept telling me to a get an electric toothbrush. When I finally got one, I didn't tell her, but I never hear the "get an electric tooth brush" again. It was the same with flossing. When I started flossing I didn't say anything, and she hasn't commented that I need to floss since.

There's a ton of evidence in the literature supporting that gum disease and cavities are, obviously, a bacterial issue. Flossing is an obvious way to disrupt pathogenic bacterial colonies by abrasion. I think irrigation is much better, as it reaches deep pockets below gums. But it doesn't replace flossing entirely. Those two, coupled with regular brushing of teeth, gum and tongue, plus oral probiotics should keep iss…

Can you expand on which probiotics?

Re: Federal health expert drop flossing from health guidelines

#67

Post by StavrosK »

Isn't it about time we got rid of the ridiculous "if we haven't researched it, we know nothing about it" fallacy?

Research is strong evidence that points towards something. Lack of research doesn't mean complete lack of a-priori knowledge. If something is obviously good for you, then that's probably a good start for recommending it.

Re: Federal health expert drop flossing from health guidelines

#68

Post by gjem97 »

StavrosK wrote: post #67

Isn't it about time we got rid of the ridiculous "if we haven't researched it, we know nothing about it" fallacy? Research is strong evidence that points towards something. Lack of research doesn't mean complete lack of a-priori knowledge . If something is obviously good for you, then that's probably a good start for recommending it.

I think that's missing the point. And, as an aside, so are all the comments in this thread that are essentially "flossing works for me, so I'm going to keep doing it." The point of this article is not that people should stop flossing, or that it's bad for some reason. The point is that an entire industry of medical professionals were saying "floss because it reduces you risk of tooth decay and gum disease," when in fact there is little evidence that it does either. It is a huge detriment to the credibility of dentists in my opinion.

Re: Federal health expert drop flossing from health guidelines

#70

Post by eksemplar »

I never learned flossing, and then in my early twenties I kind of ignored the dentist for around 7-8 years. I still brushed my teeth throughly two times a day, every day.

Got me paradentosis and almost lost me my teeth.

It's completely anecdotal, but I recomend flossing.

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