Waxed or weaved, which floss is best?

Everybody needs dental floss.  Every time you go to the dentist, it's inevitable that the dentist tells you that you need to floss more regularly.  And s/he's probably right.  We do need to floss more regularly.  So like a dutiful patient, after your most recent visit to the dentist's office, you obediently go to the grocery store to search out some dental floss (you ran out of floss since the last time you went to the dentist).  After much searching and perusing through every aisle except the hygiene aisle, you locate the aisle with the dental floss.  You approach the shelves, ready to pick up your dental floss and be on your way.  But you hesitate.  You see one.three.eight different brands and types of floss!  How do you choose which type to buy?  There are so many options!  You definitely don't remember this being such a problem the last time you bought floss (of course, it has been several years.).  After much deliberation, you've decided on the brand and flavor you prefer.  But you still have one question left: waxed or weaved-which floss is best?

Luckily for you, we are here to answer that question!

Traditionally, there were only two options in dental floss: waxed or unwaxed.  What it really came down to was personal preference and how close together your teeth were.  If you had very tight teeth, waxed floss helped you to slip the string between your teeth.  If you had teeth that were spaced slightly wider, it didn't matter if you used waxed or unwaxed.  Then you had the option of traditional floss or the tape-like floss that is so nice for use on children or widely-spaced teeth.  And now you have yet another option.

A bit of history: floss is usually made out of either nylon or Teflon.  Floss made of nylon is poured out into a ribbon form, chipped, blended, melted and re-solidified to form a yarn.  The ends of the yarn are twisted to complete the process and turn it into the dental floss we're familiar with, that sometimes frays and splits apart during use.  Floss made of Teflon is melted into a paste and then stretched into a long, thin strand.  It is then cut into thin strips to form the dental tape-like floss that doesn't fray, rarely break, but can be too wide for some crowded mouths.

The future of dental floss is in weaved floss.  Leading floss manufacturers have developed dental flosses with an ultra strong filament that resists shredding and fraying.  It stretches thing to fit easily between tight teeth spaces, and then returns to its original thickness to trap plaque in the filament.  It is weaved floss that acts like dental tape. 

Before this new type of floss, most people used one or the other: floss or tape.  Floss people didn't use tape because it didn't fit between their teeth and broke it they stretched it too far.  Tape people didn't use floss because they could get better coverage with the tape, and didn't like it when floss shreds become stuck in their teeth.  But now there is a middle ground: weaved floss.  It's spreadable like tape, thing like floss.  It reduces the bleeding that sometimes occurs with the sharp edges of floss.  It's the happy medium. 

Dentists seem to agree that this new type of floss is the best way to clean your teeth.  It's more comfortable and does a better job than traditional waxed floss or basic tape.  But the most important thing is that you're actually flossing your teeth every day.  So even if you haven't made the jump to weave floss, make sure that you're using some kind of floss so that you prevent cavities, gingivitis, and keep a happy, healthy mouth.