Do you floss then brush... or brush then floss?

[RJDiogenes]

I always floss first. If you floss second, aren't you dragging particles out into what had previously been a clean mouth?

Flossing has always struck me as a tremendous waste of time, effort & money.

I must floss, at least in one spot. I have a damaged tooth in the back that leaves a gap where large pieces of food get stuck; it's not only a cavity risk, but it can be painful.

 

[Canadave]

I don't floss, just brush. Where's that option?

+1

No fillings & no gum problems either. Flossing has always struck me as a tremendous waste of time, effort & money. Same for mouthwash. I just can't be bothered. A good brushing's always been enough for me.

Same. Flossing is such an annoyance. I find it's nearly impossible to do places like my molars, anyway.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

Floss, brush, rinse, mouthwash.

I suppose my own bit of dental strangeness is that I don't use toothpaste when I brush. I gave it up about a year ago, and my dentist says my teeth have never been cleaner. Go figure.

 

[RoJoHen]

Floss, brush, rinse, mouthwash.

I suppose my own bit of dental strangeness is that I don't use toothpaste when I brush. I gave it up about a year ago, and my dentist says my teeth have never been cleaner. Go figure.

A lot of toothpastes these days can actually rot your teeth. They almost work too well. They break up the plaque on your teeth, and then they just keep going and break up your enamel.

 

[kathryn i am]

Floss, rinse, brush, rinse.

And brushing with baking soda is amazing

 

[DAK]

Same. Flossing is such an annoyance.

I used to say that too, until I got a cavity inbetween my teeth, which ended up needing a root canal. Holy crap was that horrible! I will never go through that again unless I'm out cold. My dentist said flossing would have prevented that, so I've been doing so faithfully ever since. And according to him, floss first, then brush.

 

[Cicero]

Brush, floss, rinse, brush again.

I, too. I suspect I'm being overly thorough, since my teeth are all sealed.

 

[Non Sync]

Brush, Water Pik, Floss, Dental Rinse

 

[Top41]

I brush, floss, and then rinse. To me it sounds a bit odd to floss first because I'd be removing the food particles from between the teeth, only to put them back right away with the brush. Though I admit that if you were to rinse in between it wuld work just as well.

Well, you definitely have to rinse after flossing! But really, I make sure to get the food particles out of my mouth after dislodging them--I wipe them on a kleenex (sorry if that's TMI ).

Another question - when you brush, how long do you spend actually brushing? Per my dentists recommendation, a couple of years ago I bought a Sonicare toothbrush. The one I bought has a timer on it that automatically shuts it off after two minutes, which I found out is the amount of time you should be actively brushing.

That's what I do--I have one of those Sonicares as well. I really like it!

I must floss, at least in one spot. I have a damaged tooth in the back that leaves a gap where large pieces of food get stuck; it's not only a cavity risk, but it can be painful.

Yeah, I hate the feeling of food lodged between my teeth! Yuck. It drives me nuts, and yes, totally can be uncomfortable/painful.

Floss, brush, rinse, mouthwash.

I suppose my own bit of dental strangeness is that I don't use toothpaste when I brush. I gave it up about a year ago, and my dentist says my teeth have never been cleaner. Go figure.

Interesting! Do you just wet the toothbrush, or do you use something else?

 

[An Officer]

I floss then brush. The other arrangement doesn't make sense to me either.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I brush, then mouthwash. No floss.

 

[TGTheodore]

I brush, then mouthwash. No floss.

If you floss you most likely won't need mouthwash.

Floss, rinse, brush, rinse.

Get the big chunks out of the way so that the brush can do a better job between the teeth.

--Ted

 

[RJDiogenes]

I must floss, at least in one spot. I have a damaged tooth in the back that leaves a gap where large pieces of food get stuck; it's not only a cavity risk, but it can be painful.

Yeah, I hate the feeling of food lodged between my teeth! Yuck. It drives me nuts, and yes, totally can be uncomfortable/painful.

Especially with a gap like this. Sometimes I have to floss in the middle of a meal because it's too painful to chew.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I brush, then mouthwash. No floss.

If you floss you most likely won't need mouthwash.

I actually *like* mouthwash. It makes my mouth feel better than flossing would. And I have a Sonicare toothbrush, so it's very accurate.

 

[thestrangequark]

^I like mouthwash too. I use ACT. It's great for a quick mid-day rinse as well.

 

[Chimpy Chompy]

Brush and nothing else. The dentist takes a look, registers disappointment in the lack of work i give him and says "you're fine see you next year".

 

[TGTheodore]

Brush and nothing else. The dentist takes a look, registers disappointment in the lack of work i give him and says "you're fine see you next year".

But this, too, shall pass.

--Ted

 

[Michael Chris]

Why would it be bad to floss after? That doesn't make sense to me. When I floss I'll occassionally get a little bit of goo, but that's it.

Brush -> Rinse -> Floss -> Rinse -> Mouthwash -> Rinse

Flossing first doesn't make sense to me. You'd push the goo back into the crevices when brushing.

 

[Chimpy Chompy]

But this, too, shall pass.

--Ted

So far so good.

--Chimpy

 

[TGTheodore]

But this, too, shall pass.

--Ted

So far so good.

--Chimpy

Good to hear. Keep it up.

Dental problems can be horrendous.

--Ted