Oh, how many wishful patients have asked their dentist or dental hygienist this question: Can I just rinse with mouthwash instead of flossing? And as much as they would like to answer positively, sadly the answer to this question is no. The only way to effectively clean between teeth is by using dental floss.

Need instructions about how to floss effectively? Check out Dental-Picture-Show.com's flossing page.

 

When it comes to removing dental plaque from teeth (and the bacteria living in it), the only effective method is mechanical debridement. By this I mean scrubbing or scraping a tooth's surface. For those parts of our teeth we can see, a toothbrush can be used to accomplish this task. For in between our teeth, this scrubbing action must be accomplished with dental floss.

You really can't just rinse dental plaque off your teeth, it's too adherent. If you want proof of this, just try this series of experiments.

Purchase or ask you dentist for some "disclosing solution or tablets." These products are formulated with a red dye that will stain the dental plaque harbored on your teeth.

So, before you brush use some disclosing solution. Smile in the mirror after you have done so, so you can see what things look like. The red splotches are where the dental plaque is.

Now rinse with some water. Did the red-stained plaque come off? I can tell you right now it didn't. You might have dislodged a few food particles but for all practical purposes none of the red markings on your teeth were significantly affected. Now try rinsing with mouthwash. What do you see? Yep, you're right. No real effect on the amount of red-stained dental plaque.

What if you rinsed with an antibacterial mouthwash? Wouldn't that get it off? We'll one can wish but you'll see no real difference in the amount of disclosed plaque on your teeth after using it. By the way, are you aware of what you have just learned? If a mouthwash has antibacterial properties, we'll, that's great but don't expect it to make a giant difference in your oral health. It may affect the bacteria living on and near the surface of dental plaque but that's about it. Oral rinses really can't penetrate deeply into a layer of dental plaque and, as you have just learned, it can't really wash the plaque off your teeth either. Net effect, some benefit but not what you probably expected. (Does this mean you should not use antibacterial mouthwashes? No, what it does mean is you need to realize their limitations.)

Ok, let's try one last product. Let's use one of those rinses that "loosens" plaque so it is less adherent to tooth surfaces. Actually, I went out and bought a bottle of this type of stuff just for this hub. I rinsed three times, each time inspecting the disclosed plaque on my teeth. I saw no evidence of plaque removal with just rinsing.

Now, to the defense of this type of product, that's not it how it is intended to be used. This type of product is a "pre-brushing" rinse. But my point being for this hub, even rinsing with a plaque "loosener" doesn't effectively remove dental plaque on its own.

(By the way, I'm not a big fan of this type of product.)

The truth is, everyone needs to floss. It is the only way to effectively remove dental plaque from those "between teeth" tooth surfaces. Amazingly, this stance has even been supported by our Federal justice system.

Judge Denny Chin of the Southern District of New York court issued a finding in January of 2005 that enjoined Pfizer, Inc. (the makers of Listerine Antiseptic Mouthwash) from using the claim that their oral rinse is "as effective as floss." Judge Chin's opinion was that the clinical studies on which the Listerine claim was made had been based on flawed research. Since he was concerned that Listerine's use of this statement could pose a public health risk because consumers might become convinced that they did not need to floss daily, his decision included a ban on Pfizer's use of the "as effective as floss" statement in Listerine's advertising.