Many of us in America are obsessed with our teeth. We want healthy teeth that will last us throughout our lifetime because after we lose our childhood teeth, we know that the adult replacements for them are all we are going to get. We also not only want healthy teeth, but today more than ever in history people are dedicated to having the whitest, brightest, and straightest teeth that they possibly can. Our society wants to see good teeth and we want to give show them.



Dental care is very costly and the best solution for that cost is to have dental insurance. It is recommended that we see our dentist twice a year and hope that we do not require any technical procedures done to maintain our dental status. There are X rays, cleanings, fillings, root canals, bridges, and never forget braces. All of these things can cost us a small fortune and when you have several children, well you can forget those big family vacations if you do not have dental insurance because the money will likely be invested in the mouths of the children.

The best assurance for good dental health has always been and still is regular brushing and flossing. Today there are all kinds of fancier manual toothbrushes and some even fancier electric ones. Flossing is something that many of us do not do nearly as often as we should and some probably do not do it at all. If it is difficult to get adults to floss regularly, then you can imagine the battle that parents have getting the kids to do it.

A solution for flossing that some people have turned to is using a water pick or an oral irrigator. The water pick can be simpler to use than dental floss, but the question is does it work as well and help keep your teeth cleaner than regular flossing? While using a water pick can seem much easier to maneuver in the mouth than dental floss, it actually might not do the job as well. The water may not penetrate between teeth that are tightly fit together and this can mean you are not removing as much tooth debris as a dentist would like for you to.

So, the answer to the question is that using a water pick to aid in removing particles from between teeth and at the gum line is a help, it is also a good idea to continue flossing regularly as well. It is especially important to make sure that children know the importance of brushing and flossing and if they wish to use a water pick in addition to those things it is perfectly fine.