I bet since you were a child you were always taught to brush and floss your teeth twice a day. That is what your dentist and hygienist tells you. We all assume this is to help avoid bad breath, remove stains, get rid of food particles and prevent decay.
All correct but not the heart of the matter. The real reason is to disrupt Biofilm (plaque). Let me elaborate. Our mouths are teeming with bacteria, both good and bad. Given a chance they will congregate on your teeth and your gums forming a sticky substance called, “Biofilm.” The interesting part is that the first bacteria to congregate are the good guys, bacteria that cause no harm. We refer to them as “the early colonizers.”
Now comes the problem. If these early colonizers are left undisturbed the “late arrivers”, bacteria that are problematic start arriving like party crashers. These are the harmful bacteria that cause all the troubles that were mentioned in the first paragraph. They can only settle on your teeth and gums and cause damage if their less harmful brethren are already present and colonized. If left undisturbed, these bad boys will be the predominant bugs in three to twelve weeks.
So the idea is to disturb or remove the “early guests” so when the bad guys show up there is no partying and they go away, causing no harm. No attachment to the early colonizers, no plaque, no Biofilm means no disease, period.
The process is ongoing. Every time we knock down the Biofilm through our home-care efforts we make the early colonizers start over. So the ultimate answer to why we brush and floss twice a day is to disrupt the Biofilm process and to insure a healthy mouth.
While brushing and flossing are the core dental hygiene tools, others are also effective against Biofilm. Waterpiks, AirFloss, interproximal brushes, and PerioProtect trays, to name a few, are also effective.
Feel free to call us if there are any questions or if we can help in any way.
Drs Carl Steinberg and Gerald Weger
215-735-8844
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