Flossing turns out to be nothing more than a cheap thrill

I was watching the evening news with the family and there was the usual story about someone insulting Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.

“He doesn’t have the judgement, the temperament,” President Obama said.

And then Trump counter-insulting.

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“He’s been one of the worst presidents in the history of our country,” Trump said.

But as much fun as all that is, the story that really caught everyone’s attention was the federal government quietly dropping its long-standing recommendation that we floss daily for good dental health.

Although evidently not quietly enough because everyone seems to have noticed. That begs the question: flossing, does it really work?

That turns out to be the question that dental researchers have been asking for at least 10 years now.

Allow me to present gum disease expert Fridus van der Weijden.

“We found very little support for the removal of dental plaque and no support that it reduces gingival inflammation.”

And yet, like everyone else, he too admits that sometimes stuff will get stuck even in his teeth. So what does he do when that happens?

“I personally use wood sticks, I use them when I drive to work.”

He uses wood sticks, by which I think he means a toothpick.

So there it is. This pretty much kills the only topic of conversation with your periodontist.

But as top periodontist Wayne Arledge told CBS News, even if flossing doesn’t really do all that much, he finds that it still has a certain thrill.

“It’s amazing sometimes when you put it between your teeth and you see what’s on there,” he exclaimed.

Oh, please, send me a selfie!

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