Brush Before Floss or Floss Before Brush?

The confusion on this question is partially our fault, the fault of your dental hygienists.

We’ve had spouses actually take BETS on this question before! It’s been so entertaining! 

The confusion lies on us, though, because when we clean your teeth, we actually do it backward.

The MOST IMPORTANT POINT to understand is this: 

We are just plain happy if you floss AT ALL!

Floss WHENEVER you can floss! Don’t get too caught up on the when and where. Please, please, please, just floss whenever you can find the time…

BUT, we know some of you are a perfectionists and want to do what is most recommended.

Here is your perfect answer….

Floss first and then Brush. :)

When you floss, you release all of the live, sticky bacteria from in between your teeth. Your brush then goes through and brushes it all away.

That’s the best, most effective order to follow.  

When we say not to focus so much on the WHEN and WHERE though, we truly mean it.

People just need to find THEIR best time to floss.

Whatever time of day that may be. Wherever that may be. Whatever works best for THEIR life schedule.

Just FLOSS! Pleeeeaaassseee just floss.

What is my routine, do you ask?

Well, we can’t officially recommend what I’m about to say because not all people could pull this off safely. Still, I’ll tell you that I personally find my time to floss…..in the car. 

Yup, I floss in the car while I am sitting in California traffic.

I use floss picks ,though, with a handle. I am NOT flossing with the two-handed conventional flossing technique.

By finding my own perfect time, I end up flossing for nearly 20 minutes! I floss all the way around, and then go back a little here and a little there. I’m not thinking about the time it takes because I’m just sitting there anyways.

I’m a human being like you, and I still hate flossing before bed. It’s just another thing added to my list, when I am dead tired at the end of the day. 

Some people floss while watching TV, for the same reason that I floss in the car. They don’t think about the time it’s taking.  

So just go ahead and find YOUR time to floss, and be ready to impress at your next dental cleaning. Be sure that you are flossing the correct way, though, or you may be discouraged at the report from your dental hygienist. 

All you need to do is read up on the correct technique. SODA spilled it all for you if you follow that link above.

So why do dental hygienists floss at the END when we clean your teeth?

When we clean your teeth, we floss at the very end, because we want to get the rest of the gritty dental polish out of there for you.

We also released tartar as we were scaling with our metal instruments. That needs to be removed as well. 

Most of the tartar that we find during dental cleanings is in the “floss department.” Such an odd finding, huh? Hmmmmm, we wonder why? 

So, flossing at the very end just makes the most sense during dental cleanings. 

Follow this link if you’re curious to read what the polishing during your cleaning is actually for. 

Circling back to our perfectionists. Here is the best, most thorough dental routine to follow at home: 

1. Floss at NIGHT, before you brush. 

2. Then brush

3. Then rinse with the mouthwash that fits your genetic tendency.

Anti-cavity mouthwash is best to use at night. Anti-gingivitis mouthwash is best to use in the morning.

Most of you don’t need to use both types though. Click the “genetic tendency” link above to find out what type of mouth you may genetically have. Click on the “mouthwash” link to learn more about the different types of mouthwash that will help each problem!

We hope we answered your question and gave you a little extra knowledge too!

Though it would be best if we did, we’ll never claim to know it ALL, all of the time. Nobody knows it all! We do claim honesty, though, and we sincerely want to help as many people as we can! Our patients have maintained beautifully, following our conservative recommendations :)

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So, thanks so much for reading and letting us spill our SODA! Remember to take the time to find your HONEST DENTIST, and be sure to browse around our links and follow us on social media for answers to more of your exciting dental questions, like: 

“What does a cavity look like on an X-ray?,” “What Mouthwash should I use?”, “Why are my gums bleeding?”, “What is a deep cleaning?” “why is my tooth sensitive when I touch it on the side with my fingernail?” “My bone can get eaten away too?”