Flossing Won’t Hurt Forever

One of the biggest reasons why many people don’t floss, including both children and adults, is because of the pain that comes afterward.  After running a piece of waxed string between their teeth, most people experience swelling and bleeding gums, and the swelling can take several hours to go back down.  Worse yet, the same thing seems to happen after the second time you floss, too.

However, flossing isn’t always a painful experience.  Once you floss the first time, your gums get tougher because now they expect the string to come back and rub against them again.  You’ll still feel some swelling the second time, but the swelling will be less than it was the first time.  The third time will be easier than that, and eventually, you won’t experience any pain or discomfort no matter how often you floss.

The reason this happens is essentially the same as why your muscles grow when you work out.  By pushing your muscles and causing a little pain, you “teach” your muscles to grow bigger and stronger.  Gums aren’t exactly like muscles, but this much is the same between them.  In fact, you’ll experience the same swelling and bleeding if you ever stop brushing your teeth and then start up again later.

There’s also a good reason why you would want to floss just as often as you brush, if not more so, and it’s not just to make sure that piece of spinach doesn’t ruin your smile.  Food caught between your teeth can be stuck there for hours or even days, and for all the time it’s there the enzymes in your saliva is breaking it down into simple sugars.

Bacteria in your mouth can eat these sugars as they slowly dissolve your teeth.  Food stuck between your teeth can lead to cavities between your teeth, and they can be much harder to clean, drill out, and fill than the ones in the crowns of your molars.

So flossing can be a pain, but that pain goes away quickly if you keep at it.  In exchange, you’ll have tougher gums and less food stuck in your mouth to feed the bacteria that dissolve enamel.  Don’t wait for your semi-annual dentist visit to get between your teeth because getting in there yourself is easier than you might think.