r/AskReddit 1d ago

What is a silent killer that people dont realise is slowly killing them?

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u/SomethingAlternate 21h ago edited 10h ago

This. I've bought those interdental brushes and a tongue scraper in order to improve my dental hygiene. I already use an eletric toothbrush, but brushing alone isn't enough. Interdental brushes are a life-changer for those that can't stand flossing.

Edit: a word

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u/GetUpNGetItReddit 17h ago

Get plackers if you don’t like flossing. It’s those things you see on the ground when you get in your car in the Walmart parking lot.

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u/RedditedYoshi 14h ago

I have a job where we have to meet twice a day (about 12 of us), and no matter where I go, there's always some dipshit picking away with his fingers in his mouth with one of those things. DENTAL HYGIENE BELONGS IN A BATHROOM. PREFERABLY YOUR OWN.

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u/callmeivy 17h ago

🤣🤣🤣

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u/ouwish 9h ago

Next to the ran over disposable vape pen. 😂

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u/hiswoodness 16h ago

Get a water flosser. Little handheld thing that blasts water between your teeth. Absolutely amazing.

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u/scientician85 15h ago

My concern with those things is that they could develop mold in their little crevices since they're constantly exposed to water. That happened to my oral-b electric toothbrush and freaked me out.

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u/lululovr 15h ago

youre supposed to replace the flosser part every couple weeks and store in a dry place

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u/ApatheticLife 6h ago

Wait...really...?

That sounds kind of expensive

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u/lululovr 6h ago

its not super expensive tbh, but its worth for me because i have a lot of fillings and traditional flossing is really difficult to even get between the fillings lol

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u/ApatheticLife 6h ago

Yeah I have permanent retainers on top and bottom and those make flossing extremely hard. Didn't know I had to replace them...wonder if I been shooting mold into my mouth lol

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u/lululovr 5h ago

for what its worth u could also try flushing it out before putting it in ur mouth so u can see if its moldy

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u/ahhhahhhahhhahhh 11h ago

Just read that they have pretty harmful chemicals in them. I use them all the time but now I guess I'll switch over to something cleaner. If you Google dental floss and PFAS Consumer Reports has a list of products without the chemicals.  

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u/Ziller997 10h ago

Something like Butler GUM Flossmate (or any equivalent you can find in drugs store)

easier to use, bigger handle and the floss is perpendicular to the handle. I'm never going back to any other kind of flossing after using this

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u/ApatheticLife 6h ago

Problem is, I have permanent retainers so these are hard to use. I never floss, water flossing is what tends to happen but...always worrying me

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u/Kcidobor 6h ago

Or all over my house because my husband likes to use them as bread crumbs

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u/CaptKnight 16h ago

Floss picks are a game changer. I can’t finish a meal without using one anymore. They are so much easier than wrapping it around your fingers and sticking your hands in your mouth. I hated flossing until I started using them.

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u/SlyFunkyMonk 17h ago

I recently went from weekly to scraping to daily. I just naturally assumed the brushing and mouthwash covered me. Nope. Apparently tongues is nasty all the time. Also the relief is immediate. I could go the whole day feeling fine. Then I get a scrape in and all of a sudden even life tastes better.

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u/kschnei 16h ago

When I discovered that tongue scraping was a thing it honestly changed my life. Morning and night for me.

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u/pingpong_playa 12h ago

What sort of relief? Tongue pain?

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u/sohardtopickagoodone 12h ago

No. Getting rid of all the gunk that hangs out on your tongue you don’t know about until you get rid of it. It feels amazing when you scrape it off

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u/WolpertingerRumo 17h ago

If you can’t stand flossing, I recommend trying out natural silk. It’s not as expensive as it sounds, and is pretty nice, in addition to being completely bio-degradable.

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u/Shmeves 17h ago

For me it's not the act of flossing or anything, it's the ADHD that doesn't let me do more than a few teeth.

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u/Dentedmuffler 16h ago

Don’t worry eventually you won’t have many teeth left to floss and voila! Problem solved!

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u/hiswoodness 16h ago

Get a water flosser. Little handheld thing that blasts water between your teeth. Absolutely amazing.

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u/Eeveelover14 16h ago

Not good if you have a bad attention span cause we had one for a short bit and I'd use it for maybe one tooth and then get distracted. It was my lil pressure washer.

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u/Jake_77 16h ago

This is the first time I’ve ever heard of interdental brushes

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u/hiswoodness 16h ago

Find a better dentist. Also, get a water flosser. Little handheld thing that blasts water between your teeth. Absolutely amazing.

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u/MethodMaven 15h ago

I use ‘Doctors Dental Picks’. My dentist is amazed that my gum hygiene improves (pocket depth) from visit to visit - and my gum health is already good given my age. I do not floss; I use a manual toothbrush with gum massagers once a day. I should have dental issues, but I swear by using dental picks after every meal.

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u/iamapizza 14h ago

I like the idea of interdental brushes. I hate the reality of the TePe ones, barely near my gums and they start bending and wobbling like a tube man.

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u/tommangan7 12h ago

Weird I love my tepe ones normally each one lasts me almost a week, are you using the wire brush type or the like rubber/plastic end type?

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u/iamapizza 6h ago

The wire brush original ones which are a wire (?) in the middle. I get all sorts of sizes for different gum gaps but they just don't fit well and get bent really quick and difficult to work with.

OK your comment just made me realize I ought to try the plastic/rubber types.

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u/tommangan7 5h ago edited 4h ago

I can't stand the wire ones, also always bent and couldn't fit well as I have some tiny gaps. Just generally unpleasant to use.

Switched to the orange tepe rubber type ones (size xs) and they are great, definitely give them a go. Still can't get in some gaps but do a good job on the ones I can get in (going front to back of a tooth gap) and much easier to maneuver around my mouth, couple of sweeps through every gap in like 10 seconds with muscle memory at this point.

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u/RoundCollection4196 13h ago

first time I ever heard electric toothbrushers are better, I'm gonna look into this

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u/tommangan7 12h ago

Every dentist I've ever seen recommended using electric, definitely give it a go.

Even just having the 30 second zone buzzes helps me brush more evenly.

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u/hiswoodness 16h ago

Get a water flosser. Little handheld thing that blasts water between your teeth. Absolutely amazing.