That Interdental Cleaning Habit? Make it Second Nature

In time, you're aiming for interdental cleaning to become a, oh, just did that – winning – habit.  

Habit formation isn’t one size fits all. Some of us do it by sheer bloody-mindedness, some by piggybacking on another established behaviour, and making a behaviour more enjoyable may help it become a habit too. 

We’re going to take you through some ways to do that from understanding through to choosing, refreshing and enjoying to persisting.

Neither flossing nor interdental brushing is automatically best for everyone. Interdental brushes can be particularly useful where they fit comfortably, while floss can clean those tighter spaces that even a 0.7mm nano brush can’t enter. While your dentist or hygienist can help you choose the right method and size for your mouth, we’re focusing here on habit formation so if talking to them means delaying until your next visit, it’s better to start somewhere than not at all.  

• Ready to go interdental?   

TePe Easy Fit Interdental Brushes  

The two sizes fit many gap widths so no need to fret. Easy to pop in your basket (and your gaps, of course) as they’re either Small/Medium or Medium/Large. You can get going quickly without having to worry about too many gauges. They adapt to suit gaps because they’re flexible and tapered. Easy to handle for first timers or old timers. Plus, they come with a travel case so you can get flexible too – with when and where you’ll use them. 

• Our top ‘pick’ for starting somewhere?  

TePe Easy Picks 

The simple, portable version of interdental cleaning they promote a healthy habit of cleaning on the go. With picks, you won’t need to rinse so you’re free to roam beyond the sink, into the lounge, in front of the TV. Maybe not on a first date, though! Go orange if contacts are snug, blue if those gaps are roomier and purple if you’re blessed with generalised spacing. 

• New to flossing?  

Oral-B Satin Floss  

For those places where an interdental pick or brush won’t fit. It has a smooth, satin-like texture that’s comfortable to handle, making it a straightforward choice when you’re cleaning between your teeth. 

Always hated flossing? Then why are you flossing? There’re no prizes for being a slave to the floss. Hating the tool and finding the job thoroughly unpleasant doesn’t create a habit. If a tool creates a sensory overload that you struggle with – that sensation of cutting the blood off in your fingers with a dodgy flossing technique, for example – then it’s time to swap.  

Long-handled interdental brushes might be the very thing that makes you come to love the behaviour. There’s no struggling to pay attention to the teeth at the back with angled handles. Both Interprox Plus Interdental Brushes and TePe Interdental Angles clean without the finger acrobatics that floss can sometimes require. It might be just the thing your brain needs to begin thinking, hey, we can do this – every day! 

Disgust is a powerful avoidance response. We can all agree that grubby-looking tools are hardly an invitation to get started building a habit. Fluff on your floss, a flat-bristled brush and the local sparrows eyeing up your discarded wooden picks for nest building – they're all likely to put you off.  

To get going, you might need to throw out the old and bring in the new. You can still stay economical – some people prefer brushes that can last 1 – 2 weeks and some like to swap brushes regularly and look for a more economical price per interdental tool.  

If the old ways of cleaning don’t match your new dental work, it’s also time for a swap. Orthodontic work spells additional care for interdental spaces as they make it harder to clean your teeth. Take a look at specialist interdental cleaning recommendations if you’re wearing aligners or fixed braces when your interdental cleaning routine may need to include a combination of tools to keep those in-betweens spick and span. NICE recommends that your cleaning kit for orthodontic work should be guided by your dental practitioner.  

Bridge work and implants also need a different sort of TLC from a range of tools. When it comes to floss, for example, it’s probably a case of out with the old, in with the stiff-ended and threadable with ProxySoft’s Bridge and Implant Floss when you’ve had restoration work. 

Make the habit easy to start. Research into forming new routines suggests that people naturally look for ways to minimise effort – including keeping the things they need close at hand or somewhere visible. So put your interdental brushes, picks or floss somewhere that makes sense for your routine. A pack of TePe Easy Picks on the TV soundbar might seem strange but, if seeing them makes it easier to remember and get started, why not?  

If getting started involves hunting through a drawer, finding the floss, untangling it and generally entering an obstacle course, your brain has more opportunities to think, actually, maybe tomorrow. 

Rumour has it that one of our customers cemented cleaning his interdental spaces daily because he was determined to make his hygienist change the record.  He set out to see if he could earn her high praise rather than a wagging finger. What would happen if he did exactly as she said – would she notice?  

Your motivation does not have to be the same as the next person to warm your hygienist’s chair.  Having once had sore, bleeding gums might be enough for you to say never again.  Or just finding ways to look after your health in general by stacking simple, non-time consuming habits might keep you reeling off the floss.   

Did our customer get the attention he sought? His gum pocket measurements had improved across the board and he’s just got a little more work to do at the back. His hygienist was pleased with the progress too – he was even changing interdental brush sizes as things improved, which was another encouraging sign for her. He may be a little disappointed his professional wasn’t more effusive, there was no ticker tape parade, but those improving measurements are pretty good news altogether.  

His tool of choice? Interprox Plus Interdental Brushes. Yellow’s his flavour, but you can do you as they come in a range of sizes and their dual-coloured brushes mean plaque or bleeding are easily detected. 

Fire, flood, heartbreak, glory or just plain old ho-hum-hum-drum life, the key is to keep going. The most effective parts of your oral health (and remember, oral health is health) are the bits you keep doing. Missing days because you’ve got flu might be unavoidable but make it one of the things you pick up quickly again as you feel better. 

Missing a day doesn't erase the habit you're building. The important thing is getting back to it rather than letting one missed day become a missed week.