Sometimes one thing doesn’t necessarily equate to another; that is definitely true about flossing your teeth and bleeding gums. The truth is, if your gums bleed when you floss, it means you aren’t flossing enough and caring for your gums enough. Did you ever wonder why your gums bleed when you floss? Ever ask your family dentist?
If you hit your thumb with a hammer, it will hurt. No kidding! But hammers are for hitting nails, not thumbs. So your thumb hurts because you did something with a hammer that it was not intended to be used for. Kind of like that with floss and bleeding gums. You might think your gums bleed because you floss, but that’s not really the whole story. Your gums bleed because you are not doing something you should be – caring for them properly! Your gums bleed because they are unhealthy. Healthy gums do not bleed.
The fact is, healthy gums do not have enough of a blood supply to actually bleed, whether brushing or flossing or being prodded with a sharp dental instrument.
Unhealthy gums have an excess amount of blood in them; unhealthy, in terms of being infected or containing too much bacteria.
When your body senses bacteria or an infection, it sends blood to fight off the infection and to combat the bacteria. This is true whether you cut your leg, scrape your knee, or have unhealthy gums. And this is why your gums might look red and puffy – they are filled with blood to help fight off the bacteria that is in them.
But in this case, your body believes the problem (or the root of the infection) is the tooth. So it works overtime to try to eliminate what it thinks the source of the infection to be: the tooth. The result is red puffy gums that bleed when they are poked or flossed. And, if left untreated, the result could be possible bone loss around the tooth, and later on down the road, possible loss of the tooth. You don’t want to end up there!
Flossing your teeth can help with this! The more you floss, the more the trapped bacteria exits the gums, and the healthier your gums become. The healthier your gums become, the less they bleed. And when you see no blood when flossing your teeth, brushing, or getting your teeth cleaned with your family dentist, you know they are healthy indeed!
Are your gums puffy and red? Do they bleed when you brush or floss? If so, now is the time to begin flossing your teeth more frequently and make your teeth and gums more healthy. When you brush your teeth (i.e., at least twice per day), you should also floss.
Do you have questions about flossing, your gum health, or your current state of bleeding gums? Dr. Joseph Majka can help. He is here to answer any questions you may have and help you define a plan to ensure healthy teeth and gums. Dr. Majka is a family and cosmetic dentist located in Valparaiso, Indiana, providing gentle dental care. Call Dr. Majka today at (219) 464-7191.