The OPTISMILE Podcast 119 - Floss, Waterpiks and Tiny Brushes: What Actually Works

eRadio SA · Aug 3, 2026 · 27m

Introduction

Almost none of the expensive trouble in a mouth begins on the surfaces you can see in the mirror. It begins in the gaps between the teeth, where decay, gum disease and bone loss get a quiet head start and where a toothbrush simply cannot reach.

In this episode Dr Clifford Yudelman settles a long-running argument: is string floss finished, are the little brushes genuinely better, and where does a Waterpik actually fit in?

Along the way he explains why gums bleed and why that is a reason to keep going rather than stop, how to clean under a bridge without wrecking it, whether floss…