If it's been a while since you've flossed regularly or if you notice that your gums appear red, puffy, tender, or bleed excessively when brushing or flossing, it's important to see your dentist for an exam to check for signs of advanced gum disease.
We might have swelling, soreness, or bleeding in the gums, especially after flossing. This is how our body's inflammation response works. Much like the sliver in your finger, your body is trying to irrigate the food, plaque, and bacteria in your gums with this inflammation and bleeding.
Typically, it is caused by poor brushing and flossing habits. In the advanced stages of gum disease, gums can become quite painful. If your gums are throbbing, or you are feeling a pulsing sensation, it's possible that your gums are infected and could be in danger.
Swollen gums are a common symptom of gingivitis and other types of gum disease. But they can also point to other health conditions like infection, vitamin deficiencies or hormonal changes.
If you don't clean between your teeth often, it may take a second for your teeth to get used to it. Feeling pain or discomfort after flossing for the first time is normal. Getting adjusted to a regular cleaning process may be a little painful, but it's important to stick with it.
By flossing regularly for three to ten days, your body will adapt to the irritation and the gum tissue will begin to toughen. After roughly a week, your gums should stop bleeding. If they continue to bleed even after you've been flossing for a while, consult your dentist for any potential gum problems you may have.
Red Flags to Look Out for If You Are Not Flossing Properly
Patients will report of tender or painful gums, and they can bleed very easily even when brushing. Swelling is your body telling you that there's something wrong with your gums. Too much force during flossing may also cause some abrasions and cuts on the gums.
Left untreated, this type of gum overgrowth may eventually turn into gum recession and lead to a range of serious symptoms, including loose teeth, significant pain, and more. Untreated gum disease can even increase the risk of several serious systemic health conditions, including heart attack and stroke.
In most cases, swelling in the gums should go away after 1 or 2 days. For example, if you have food stuck in your teeth, or have used a mouthwash that irritated your gums the swelling should not last long.
After you slide the floss between your teeth, you should bend it around the tooth and let it plunge beneath the gum line (in a perfect world, it should plunge around 2 – 3 millimeters down).
While flossing, you will want to gently move the floss around each tooth and should not touch the gums. Moving the floss in the opposite direction of the gum line can help decrease the risk hitting the gums while you floss.
While it may be surprising, a study has found that flossing first followed by brushing with a fluoride toothpaste is more effective in removing interdental plaque than brushing first, flossing second. In addition, flossing before brushing results in greater fluoride retention between teeth.
Flossing usually takes around two minutes, but it can take longer if you're flossing for the first time or flossing with braces. Most people floss at the same time they brush their teeth, either in the morning or at night.
Healthy gums are pink (or light brown if you are darker-skinned), firm, and do not bleed when you brush or floss. The gums fit snugly around the teeth on all sides to help protect the underlying bone.
Gingivitis can cause dusky red, swollen, tender gums that bleed easily, especially when you brush your teeth. Healthy gums are firm and pale pink and fitted tightly around the teeth. Signs and symptoms of gingivitis include: Swollen or puffy gums.
If left untreated, gingivitis can progress to periodontitis, which is a more serious form of gum disease that can lead to tooth loss and chronic health conditions. There are four stages of gum disease: gingivitis, early periodontitis, moderate periodontitis, and advanced periodontitis.
Effects of Flossing Too Hard
With hard flossing over time, your gums will begin to recede. Once this happens, you'll start to experience tooth pain due to the areas of the tooth being exposed can have thin enamel. With extreme cases, the root of the tooth can be exposed causing even further tooth pain.
Yes, the Dentist Knows
They'll be able to detect the plaque and inflammation between your teeth even if you brushed and flossed right before you went in for your appointment. If you haven't been flossing, prepare yourself for a friendly and concerned lecture from your dental care provider.
Swollen and inflamed gums can lead to gum disease, which requires treatment. In some cases, the pain may simply be caused by flossing too hard or too often. If this is the case, you can try to floss more gently or reduce the number of times you floss each day.
The simple answer is, no. If your gums are damaged by, for example periodontitis, the most severe form of gum disease, it's not possible for receding gums to grow back. However, even though receding gums can't be reversed there are treatments that can help to stop the problem from getting worse.
There are some advantages of flossing at night rather than the morning. Flossing at night will remove any plaque between your teeth that has been built up over the course of the day. This can make your teeth feel cleaner and fresher when you wake up in the morning than they would with just brushing alone.