Oral health: Flossing has to be taught well

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Main

Sir, in spite of recent US health official's pronouncements and those of the scientific advisers of the BDA that flossing is ineffective, I would offer a word of caution before 'banning' patients from flossing their teeth. I am a retired specialist periodontologist and a past Director of the Army School of Dental Hygiene, Aldershot.

When teaching hygienist students I felt it incumbent upon myself to 'practise what I preached'. I started to floss my teeth daily and have done so religiously every day since over the last 46 years. I have no gingivitis, no periodontal diseases and have not required any restorative work for the same period of time.

Flossing has to be taught well. It is not an easy task to master but it does work when patients are taught how to floss effectively on a daily basis. I accept there are other equally effective and perhaps easier to use interdental tooth cleaning aids now available, ie interdental brushes etc, but floss will still continue to have its uses in places where mini brushes cannot go and is performed correctly on a daily basis.

1. Farnham