After health officials in the US branded flossing a waste of time dentists are quickly jumping to the defence of the daily technique and saying that you should be flossing to keep your teeth and gums healthy. Far from wasting your time, dentists say that flossing can keep teeth strong and help prevent gum disease, as well as other health problems.
The general public are understandably confused about who they should be listening to, after the American Dental Association waded in on the argument last week, saying that just because there is no strong evidence to support flossing, it doesn’t mean that it is not effective at preventing disease and keeping teeth healthy.
Gum disease can lead to heart disease and other conditions, studies have suggested, and dentists are now saying that flossing can stop the damaging bacterium from spreading into the blood stream and causing disastrous health problems for the rest of the body. If practiced correctly, flossing could protect against memory loss and even dementia, according to some research. Flossing should also be combined with brushing twice a day for at least two minutes, in order to maintain a good level of oral health.