51–60 of 80 posts
I've always wondered what is the order of importance when it comes to oral hygiene. Brush, paste, duration, technique. Further which is more important, brushing, flossing or a good mouthwash? Is there anything that survives a chlorhexidine rinse?
I've always wondered what is the order of importance when it comes to oral hygiene. Brush, paste, duration, technique. Further which is more important, brushing, flossing or a good mouthwash? Is there anything that survives a chlorhexidine rinse?
At first I was going to ask if that was the stuff in original Listerine (if you don't recall or remember, or too young to know, Listerine used to sell a version that was a yellowish-tint, tasted like crap, and burned the s--t out of your gums and mouth; likely it was just high-proof alcohol, and the same could be done with some cheap vodka)...
Now I'm wondering if chlorhexidine is the stuff my dental hygienist gives me to rinse my mouth out with before she starts to clean my teeth - I'll have to ask.
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I find it hard to believe this sudden flurry of doubt about flossing, just based on my own experience. I have quite packed together teeth and find flossing very fiddly, so am very inconsistent with it. When I don't floss, after 3 or 4 months, my gums start to puff up and bleed when brushed. When I do floss at least once a week, they don't. It was especially obvious when I smoked, a few months after visiting the denti…
Yes, but that is all anecdotes. Nobody with any intelligence seriously believes flossing is useless, but we don't have science to prove it, and until we have science there is room for doubt. If you don't know any science it is reasonable to argue that a heavy object falls faster than a light one, but once you do some science it isn't reasonable. (it is also reasonable to argue the other way, but most people would lau…
Incorrect, I've seen articles lately saying that flossing is useless because "there's no evidence that it's helpful". Seriously. I've even read that some dentists don't recommend it now.
It's pretty mind-boggling to me, but I have no reason to doubt mainstream journalism that makes these claims. Personally, I use an electric toothbrush, but that simply cannot get all the bits of food out from between my teeth, the way flossing does. How anyone can think leaving bits of food between your teeth all night is a good idea, I have no idea.
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You would spend much more than 10 hours on dentists appointments if you don't do this. Brushing and flossing properly cannot be stated as a loss of anything - time, money, health, whatever, no matter how you try to frame it. Don't delude yourself and others.
Additionally, you may not notice it but it you don’t floss you are likely to have bad breath due to the food trapped between your teeth (it depends on the gaps between your teeth but any food that sits in your mouth will eventually smell like shit). Outside of the other benefits of flossing, knowing that my breath smells better and not worrying about it is worth the 5-10 minute effort once a day.
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Additionally, you may not notice it but it you don’t floss you are likely to have bad breath due to the food trapped between your teeth (it depends on the gaps between your teeth but any food that sits in your mouth will eventually smell like shit). Outside of the other benefits of flossing, knowing that my breath smells better and not worrying about it is worth the 5-10 minute effort once a day.
If it's 10 minutes, it goes into ~60 hours/year territory, which is about how much time you get off for a week long vacation.
This is going to sound like a shill but I have to recommend the new Gum Detoxify toothpaste from Crest and thought I'd share it with other Hacker News readers. It has stannous fluoride and that is supposed to work better and actually kill bacteria around your gums. The reviews for it seemed crazy positive so I thought I would try it and it has been a product that actually does what it says. I have to say, I wake up w…
There's also nano-hydroxyapatite (n-Ha), a bioactive form of calcium apatite that has been found to stick to dentine and help remineralize your teeth [1] [2]. It's popular in Japan, where it's even added to things like sports drinks. It's not easy to get in the West yet. The only toothpaste I know with n-Ha is Boka [3], and there's a more expensive Japanese one on Amazon called Apagard Premio [4]. [1] https://www.ncb…
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Yes, but that is all anecdotes. Nobody with any intelligence seriously believes flossing is useless, but we don't have science to prove it, and until we have science there is room for doubt. If you don't know any science it is reasonable to argue that a heavy object falls faster than a light one, but once you do some science it isn't reasonable. (it is also reasonable to argue the other way, but most people would lau…
Yes it was an anecdote, but perhaps I wasn't clear, my point is that almost anyone whose gums bleed can easily test the benefits of flossing. A much better analogy would be that people are starting to claim that farts might not smell as there's no scientific studies that conclusively say so. As dentists point out rather regularly since that meta-study came out, they can clearly tell who flosses and who doesn't. Puffy…
P. gingivalis has been shown that it can migrate from the mouth to the brain. It is also found in the brains of Alzheimer's sufferers. But we don't know yet if it is THE cause of Alzheimer's. Which is to say "more research is needed to prove a cause and effect link." This is still fresh science, the ink is still wet. It might ultimately prove that the cause of Alzheimer's is P. gingivalis (which is Nobel Prize levels…
There's always a downside: the time lost. Over a year we loose 10+ hours on that.
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Yes, but that is all anecdotes. Nobody with any intelligence seriously believes flossing is useless, but we don't have science to prove it, and until we have science there is room for doubt. If you don't know any science it is reasonable to argue that a heavy object falls faster than a light one, but once you do some science it isn't reasonable. (it is also reasonable to argue the other way, but most people would lau…
I don't think I follow. I believe we have the science to prove that having food stuck between your teeth is worse than not having food stuck between your teeth.
We have science that aluminium in the brain correlated to alzheimers, and aluminium cookware causes high level of aluminium in the brain - but further science can't find a connection with alzheimers and cookware. (Note, the above is the state of science as of 20 years ago, things may have changed)