It’s time for chores! You pick up the clutter, pull out the vacuum, and get to work. You vacuum all the detritus of you and your family’s life away. Do you pull out the chairs, the couch and vacuum underneath them? The answer to that question runs parallel to the topic of today’s blog post:

What Happens If You Don’t Floss?

When you brush your teeth, you scrub away the plaque-causing bacteria only on the surface of them. It’s like vacuuming the carpet and floor surfaces of your living spaces and leaving the dust and debris underneath the couch and other furniture. It’s exactly like leaving the job only halfway done!

If you don’t floss, bacteria set up camp in the spaces in between your teeth and below the gum line. When left undisturbed, this bacteria leads to plaque and hardens into tartar, which can only be removed by the dentist. All that unflossed bacteria and plaque harbor acids, which eat away at the enamel and cause cavities. Bacteria under the gum line greatly increase the likelihood of gum inflammation, which ultimately develops into fully-fledged gingivitis or periodontitis, gum disease.

Tooth Decay:

The thing with bacteria in between your teeth and below your gum line is that they lead to cavities. This tooth decay is invisible and you are unlikely to feel pain from these cavities until they become very serious. To detect decay in between teeth spaces, the team at Arlington Dental Excellence uses cutting edge technology.

• DIAGNOdent Laser Cavity Detection: This noninvasive technology allows us to pinpoint the location of tooth decay and make a treatment plan that will be the barest minimum that you require, thereby impacting your smile as little as possible, making your treatment more comfortable, and more affordable.
• Digital Radiography: Faster, more accurate, and much safer than conventional film radiography, digital radio graphs allow the team to reveal the areas hidden from the naked eye, like beneath existing fillings.

Gum Disease:

If your gums bleed when you brush or floss, this is a serious red flag! Healthy gums should not bleed and if yours do, it’s extremely likely that you have early gingivitis. If left unchecked, this condition causes the gums to pull away from the teeth. The recession of gums due to periodontitis exposes new surfaces of the teeth to plaque and bacteria that leads to tooth decay. Ultimately, decay compromises the tooth structure and will result in premature tooth loss.

Although tooth decay and gum disease are extremely serious consequences of neglecting to floss, on a more superficial level, not flossing leads to bad breath! Considering these consequences of failing to floss, it’s healthiest, easiest, and most cost efficient to floss regularly.

If you are worried about your flossing technique, talk to the team at Arlington Dental Excellence. We’ll help you master your flossing phobia and get you comfortable with making a habit of flossing.

Contact our office today to schedule your next checkup!