Oral hygiene: how to clean the interdental spaces?

Is brushing your teeth for at least 3 minutes after each meal and brushing your tongue enough to keep your mouth healthy?

Almost.

For a'truly effective oral hygiene one must not forget to Clean the interdental spaces (those between tooth and tooth); in fact, the tooth has five surfaces:

1️⃣ occlusal
2️⃣ occlusal
3️⃣ lingual
4️⃣ mesial
5️⃣ distal

Lo brush can only reach three surfaces but not the other two (mesial and distal).

These two surfaces are in close contact with the respective sides of the other teeth, so food debris easily sticks to them; if, together with plaque, they are not removed, they give rise to tartar, which binds tightly to tooth enamel, paving the way for the development of oral diseases.

How to clean interdental spaces? There are so many alternatives available:

👉 floss And tape, with or without wax
👉 interdental brushes, suitable for medium and wide interdental spaces between 0.6 mm and 2.2 mm in diameter
👉 interdental gel which can be bactericidal and, when applied to the filaments of the interdental brush, penetrates the interdental areas, thus preventing gum inflammation and tooth decay
👉 Oral sprinklers or hydropulsors that give off a pressurized jet of water

These tools can be used before or after brushing; ideally, we use them every time we brush our teeth, but even once a day is a great help!

[Medical Director: Dr. Mauro Savio, Member of the Dentists Register Provincial Order of Surgeons and Dentists of Milan n. 4168].