People Who Floss Are Better Than Everyone Else

It is insane how much of a difference it makes. I grew up in a household/culture where flossing was basically an optional “once in a while” event (brushing teeth 2-3 times a day and using mouthwash every time was mandatory though). Once a year dentist visits were also happening on regular. By age 15, i already had mid-upper single digit number of cavity fillings, and it just seemed like it was the norm, to a degree, for a lot of people around (including my parents).

Then my family moved to the US, and the first dentist I got here drilled into my head that flossing was a must. I didn’t look deeply into it, as a teenager with no expertise wouldn’t, and decided to just blindly listen to that advice and apply it.

That advice ended up working really well. I am in my 30s now, and had exactly zero need for any “functional” work on my teeth since then (cosmetic orthodontic work doesn’t count). No cavities, no fillings, nothing. The improvement was just that massive.

I gotta say, one thing that helped me a lot was getting a waterpik/equivalent water picker from another brand[0]. String floss was too unwieldy and made it kinda difficult to reach some of the nooks and crannies in the back of the jaw, and my dental hygienist pointed it out before that those areas need better flossing. Which took me a ton of effort and time every single time using a string floss.

This is merely anecdotal, and I am not educated enough about the subject matter to make any generalized statements. But for me personally, getting into the “flossing is the main event” mindset made a massive long-term difference.

[0] No, I am not advertising for Waterpik brand. In fact, I switched to another brand eventually, because i found one that was more portable, but still had strong pressure. But that’s just nitpicking, as i was satisfied with the functionality of the original one as well.

Hey man, thanks for sharing this! I was pretty shocked to see traffic coming from YCombinator of all places. Really made my day.

I’m not sure where the author got the idea that flossing is more valuable than brushing.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/tossing-flossing-2016081...

If you have stained/yellow teeth and have trouble starting flossing regularly I recommend going for in-chair whitening. The idea that I spent good money on them suddenly made me floss from 1-2 weekly to everyday and is now a ingrained habit

Waterpik with the large tank, a quarter full of Listerine, and a regular pik. Use a second pik to keep the tiny cover tilted open, to keep pressure up.