The most incisive question I’ve heard in conjunction with flossing was: “How can you kill an infection with a piece of string?”
The value of flossing is largely mythical. Flossing does remove large particles of food stuck between your teeth but when it comes to eliminating bacteria from deep under your gums, flossing falls short of the task. To claim that tooth decay is caused because you don’t floss enough is, at best, whimsical. There’s certainly no research to substantiate this claim.
To compound the issue, sugars and carbohydrates nourish the bacteria in our mouths. An excess of sugar or drinks containing high fructose corn syrup actively multiplies bacteria under your gum line.
This should concern you.
In the 1980’s, Periodontist Dr Joseph Phillips cautioned us: “Flossing with string can give you a live bacterial vaccination. Mark my words, a big Class Action suit will be coming against the Dental Society for teaching flossing.”
The Class Action suit didn’t occur because the American Dental Association painted Dr. Phillips as a maverick and pressured him into early retirement.
It is vital to keep the balance of bacteria in check to have a healthy mouth. There are some 400-500 different types of bacteria in the mouth, a few of which may be classified as ‘rogue’ rather than ‘bad’.
Flossing may remove food debris, but rather than removing it, flossing tends to spread pathogenic bacteria around your mouth. To have and maintain proper oral (and overall) health, you need to ensure pathogenic bacteria cannot build up in your mouth.
Since floss was first patented in 1874, some dentists have advocated its use. Dental associations have endorsed it, and government bodies have promoted it. Today, some dentists even hand out floss samples to patients to use in their battle against gum disease and tooth decay. “Floss twice a day”, they tell patients.
“Except there’s little proof that flossing works”, writes the Guardian. “Following an investigation by Associated Press (AP), last year (2015) journalists from the agency asked the departments of health and human services and agriculture in the US for their evidence that flossing works.
Since then, the US government has quietly dropped the recommendation, admitting that there is no scientific evidence to prove the benefits. And now the NHS is set to review their own guidelines.
A leading British dentist said there is only “weak evidence” that flossing helps in this way. Professor Damien Walmsley of Birmingham University, said the time and expense required for reliable studies meant the health claims often attributed to floss were unproven.
Walmsley, who is also a scientific adviser to the British Dental Association, said: “The difficulty is trying to get good evidence. People are different and large studies are costly to do … until then you can’t really say yes or no.” He added “more sophisticated trials” were needed. “It’s important to tell people to do the basics. Flossing is not part of the basics.”
AP also looked at the most rigorous research of the past decade. Twenty-five studies in leading journals found evidence for flossing is “weak, very unreliable”, of “very low” quality, and carries “a moderate to large potential for bias”.
One review conducted last year said:
“The majority of available studies fail to demonstrate that flossing is generally effective in plaque removal.”
Another 2015 review cites “inconsistent/weak evidence” for flossing and a “lack of efficacy”. One study did credit floss with a slight reduction in gum inflammation.
A dental magazine commented that any benefit would be so minute that users might not notice.
In my opinion, flossing can cause considerable harm. Poor flossing techniques damage gums by dislodging infection-causing bacteria.
The British Dental Association commented: “Small inter-dental brushes are best for cleaning the area in between the teeth, where there is space to do so. Floss is of little value unless the spaces between your teeth are too tight for the interdental brushes to fit without hurting or causing harm.”
This isn’t just me ranting about flossing. Holistic Dentist Dr. Reid L. Winick, D.D.S., says, “Throw away your floss.”
For those of you who may continue flossing more vigilantly, it’s much better for the environment if you use silk floss, which has recently become available at FlossPot.com
For a refreshing perspective on flossing from a dental hygienist.….watch: Dental Floss Is a Waste Of Time: Today Show (2:49)
Graeme Dnnen
ResourcesForlife.net
PS. This is an excerpt from “Gum Disease: The Silent Battle In Your Mouth”. The book contains many valuable examples of where we have been drip-fed questionable information about our dental health, ultimately leading to extra visits to the dentist chair for work that may not have been necessary – as well as extra costs.
Brace yourself, because “Gum Disease: The Silent Battle in Your Mouth” is not the dental thriller we ever asked for, but the one we desperately need.
• What would you think if you learned that your wisdom teeth probably didn’t need to be removed?
• There’s a MUCH better mouthwash than the potentially toxic one you’re using
• Learn the real cause of cavities, not the cause we’re told
• Toothache? Discover many remedies
• What are the Hell’s Angels of your bloodstream?
• Dental Water Jets – there’s a right way and a wrong way. Important to know which is which.
• Learn how to make your own, effective toothpaste easily
• Fluoride is now classified as a neurotoxin – at last!
• plus sports drinks – baby’s milk bottles – chewing gum – dental health in Asia, and more
It seems that our poor, unwitting enamel is the victim of a highly questionable alliance between Big Toothpaste, an army of gleeful hygienists, and dentists who apparently moonlight as drill-happy performance artists.
We’ve been marching into dental surgeries for “routine” visits, only to be told that those stubborn gums are “in need of a good deep clean” – the dental equivalent of putting your car up on blocks because of a dodgy air freshener.
So if you’ve ever had the sneaking suspicion that your dentist might have a vested interest in your oral hygiene shortcomings, this book is the whistleblower you’ve been waiting for. You’ll no longer be susceptible to having the proverbial wool pulled over your eyes.
Gum Disease: The Silent Battle In Your Mouth UK Kindle
Gum Disease: The Silent Battle In Your Mouth UK Paperback
Gum Disease: The Silent Battle In Your Mouth US Kindle
Gum Disease: The Silent Battle In Your Mouth US Paperback
if you live outside the UK or USA, go to your Amazon and under books type “Gum Disease: The Silent Battle In Your Mouth”.
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