Did you know that if you floss your teeth as often as you should (once a daily) and correctly, you will use 122 yards of floss in one year? However, on average, only 18 yards are sold per person per year. That’s only 15% of what you should use a year!
Step one, you need to floss your teeth once a day. You do not have to do more than that.
Now on to step two, how to floss your teeth correctly.
According to the American Dental Association, this is how to floss properly:
Start with about 18 inches of floss. Wrap most of it around the middle finger of one hand, the rest around the other middle finger.
Grasp the floss tightly between your thumbs and forefingers, and use a gentle shoeshine motion to guide it between teeth.
When the floss reaches the gum line, form a C shape to follow the contours of the tooth.
Hold the floss firmly against the tooth, and move the floss gently up and down.
Repeat with the other tooth, and then repeat the entire process with the rest of your teeth, “unspooling” fresh sections of floss as you go along.
If you have dental work such as a bracket behind your front bottom teeth or braces, ask your dentist for spooling threads to help you thread the floss between your teeth and the dental work. They work much like threaders do for threading a needle.
If you claim that you aren’t coordinated enough to floss or your fingers are too big for your mouth, then try using disposable floss holders. You can find them on the toothpaste/toothbrush aisle in most grocery stores.
Flossing should only take about 3-5 minutes, and it’s easily implemented as part of your bedtime routine if you can’t floss in the morning or during lunch.