YOUR DENTAL HEALTH Flossing By Dr. Jesh Recently in the news, an article released by the Associated Press made the claim that flossing is unnccessary, as there was no scientifi evidence to prove its bencfits This article gained a ton of publicity on both Dr. Jesh Tse sewspapers and the intemet. We as dentists, however, have been preaching the benefits of flossing for years and continuously reiterating its importance to each and every one of our patients. Now, if you already have your mind made up that flossing is unnecessary, 1 doubt that anything I can write will change that. However, if in light of this new information you're now sitting on the fence of whether flossing is soscthing you should do, let me highlight my thoughts. To complete a stuty of how one variable affects another, for example, how flossing affects tooth decay formation, all other variables that could contribute to prodacing the same resul would need to be removed For such a multifactorial disease such as tooth decay, removing those other variables is qune difficult. You cannot simply have everyone in the test group stop brushing th et, stop or stast smoking, or cating no sugar, These variables can have a drastic impact on the results. The other way to eliminate these variables is to have a largc cnough group size that these variables balance cach other from randomization. The other issue with studying tooth decay is that it is a slow peocess. The start of new cavity fornsation takes a significant amount of time, can take more than 6 months bo grow from the first visible signs of enamel demineralization on an x ray to when a dentist may choose to treat the cavity. This doesn't even nclude the amount of time necessary for the decay peocess to even nitiate. As it may be becoming clearer, in ceder to test for flossing, we would need a very large population size for the study, and studied over multiple years so be able to desermine whether flossing has an effect. A stuady of this magnitude would roquire significant cost, and as a resalt, a complete and verified study such as this has yet to happen. The article in the Associated Press made it seem that since there is no such study to prove a link between flossing and a reduction in decay and cavities, that this indicates that there is no actual proof of the necessiny of flossing. In my mind, there is a fairly simple est to show you that flossing works. After dinner, brush your teeth for as long as you would normally, I recommend two minutes, trying to be as thorough as possible. Afte that, simply floss your teeth with proper technique and see if there is anything on the floss. Depending on how often you floss, there may or may not be an odour associated with this debris, If you consider that food debris and bacteria left in constant contact with tooth structure results in docay, then I don't think a study involving a large population and high cost is necessary In the end, for most people I think it is apparent that flossing is bencficial and a necessary step in maintaining good oral hygiene. I don't think that this recent "revelation really swayed anyone either way in their thinking about whether they should Hoss. I'm coefident that most people can afford the minute of extra time in their routine to floss if they wanted to, whether it actually prevents cavities and gum disease or not. Here's hoping that you will: AURA call: 778-754AURA DENTAL CLINIC (2872) ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS GENERAL & FAMILY DENTISTRY DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY SEDATION OPTIONS AVAILABLE FAMILY ORIENTED CARE EMERGENCY APPOINTMENTS CALL: 778-754 AURA (2872) www.WESTKELOWNADENTAL CA