Water Floss vs Regular Floss: What Are The Difference? Which Is Better?

Brushing and flossing your teeth are the most standard practices of dental hygiene. However, many individuals wanted to know if water flossing is an alternative to traditional flossing. Knowing the difference between water floss vs regular floss may help you improve your dental hygiene practice. The St Leonards Green Dental team considers both types of flossing important.

What Is Flossing?

Brushing the teeth is a successful method of eliminating food plaque from the surfaces of the teeth. Nonetheless, it is not an excellent approach to remove food in the middle of the teeth or underneath the gum line.

Traditional flossing is an inexpensive and quick approach to get rid of food particles that a toothbrush cannot reach. It utilizes a slender piece of string that you place in between each of the teeth. This string tenderly scrapes all over each tooth’s surface to get plaque and food particles off of the tooth and free from the gums.

Use of Regular Floss

Traditional flossing is a generally straightforward procedure. The dental health professional is a good resource for further information or explanation on these systems. Nevertheless, here are the steps on how to use regular floss. You can also consult expert dentists about how to use a string of floss.

1. Get a piece of floss, cut it around 18 inches long, then wrap it around each hand’s center fingers.
2. Press the floss between the thumbs and first fingers on every hand firmly, leaving around 1-2 inches floss.
3. Pull the floss tight in the middle of the two hands and utilize the forefingers to manage the floss between two teeth with a delicate sliding to and fro movement.
4. Wrap the tooth and tenderly slide the floss up and down along the teeth’ surfaces and beneath the gums.
5. Begin on the base teeth, moving from one side of the mouth to the next, and do the same on the upper teeth.

What is Water Floss?

Water flossing, also known as water picking, is entirely different from traditional flossing.

The water flosser uses a unique machine that coordinates a surge of water into the mouth and gums. Instead of rubbing the teeth to eliminate plaque, a water flosser applies the water’s pressure to massage the gums and drive the food away from the teeth.

Use of Water Floss

It is significant for users to read all directions completely and be sure that they understand them. Every water flosser may work a little differently, yet the overall advances will generally be the same. When using a water floss, users tend to:

1. Fill the water supply with warm water and put it back into the base of the tool.
2. Plugin the gadget, if necessary, and modify the pressure control. It is good, to begin with, low pressure and change it to be higher if essential.
3. Put the tip into the mouth with the lips shut and turn the unit on.
4. Begin with the back teeth, pointing the tip over the gum line, and work toward the center of the mouth.
5. Stop momentarily with the tip between every tooth to permit water to stream out of the mouth and sink.
6. Turn off the device, discharge the tip, and clean the unit as per the guidelines.

It is imperative to concede to the directions for the particular water flosser being utilized.

Water Floss vs. Regular floss: Which is Better?

Knowing which tool between water floss vs regular floss is better to use, let us identify their advantages and disadvantages.

Advantages of a Regular Floss

• Traditional flossing is a very effective technique for eliminating excess food off of the teeth.
• Using regular loss is less expensive than getting a water flosser.
• You can quickly get them from any drug store or supermarket.
• Flossing is snappy and simple and should be possible anyplace.

Disadvantages of a Regular Floss

• difficulty arriving at certain zones of the mouth with floss
• flossing can make minor bleeding, mainly if not done consistently
• causing or worsening gum sensitivity
• traditional floss can once in a while be hard to handle by some individuals

Advantages of a Water Flosser

• A water flosser is not tricky to utilize, particularly for individuals with braces or other kinds of dental work like permanent or temporary bridges.
• The massage activity can likewise improve gum wellbeing and reach areas that regular floss cannot reach.

Disadvantages of a Water Flosser

• A water flosser can be costly to buy and will require space for storage.
• It needs access to power and water, making it hard to use outside of the home.

Floss Before or After You Brush: What is The Ideal Way?

After knowing the difference between water floss vs. regular floss, you might also want to know if you should floss first or do it after you brush.

In any case, both ways are acceptable, as long as you do a complete job. Some individuals argue that they prefer to floss first to release food particles from between teeth, which you can brush away after.

Others like to brush first to eliminate the main part of plaque before flossing and permit the fluoride from toothpaste to arrive at regions obstructed by food.

A recent study found out that the amount of plaque between teeth was decreased more in the floss first, brush the second method.

Be that as it may, the ADA and American Academy of Periodontology suggest brushing and flossing in any sequence to maintain your smile healthy.

Conclusion

Although there are differences between water floss and regular floss, both are an excellent method to take care of gums and teeth, in addition to brushing. You can use both dental devices to make sure you remove the plaque and clean teeth and gums thoroughly.

Remember that the best dental hygiene technique is one you will adhere to, appreciate, and see yourself using daily.