Do you floss? 你有使用牙线的习惯吗？
Well, the answer I always get is NO.
In Malaysia, less than 20% of people floss their teeth, and many of them don't even know what is floss. That’s most unfortunate, We dentist say, because flossing is very important in preventing tooth decay in between your teeth and gum disease!
我常得到的答案是“没有”。在马来西亚，只有少过20%的人有使用牙线， 大部分的人甚至连牙线是什么都不知道。这是非常令我们难过的事，因为牙线能够非常有效的防止你的牙齿间的蛀牙及预防牙龈疾病！这么好的东西，怎么都没有人知道或使用呢？
Q: What is flossing? 牙线是什么？
A: Flossing is to remove food and dental plaque from between teeth by a Dental floss, a cord of thin filaments.
Dental plaques, the complex bacteria ecosystem that forms on tooth surfaces that causes tooth decay, gums problems, and eventually tooth loss. Flossing or using other interdental aid is the only way to remove plaque between our teeth.
牙线是用来清理牙齿间的食物及牙食 (plaque), 牙齿上的牙食是细菌的温床， 它会造成蛀牙，牙龈病然后牙齿松摇。而这些牙食也只能使用牙线或其他种类的齿间清理器才能有效清理干净。
Q: I haven’t flossed for years now and I still have my teeth and no pain. How bad is it really not to floss?
我从来没有使用过牙线，但我的牙齿都完好也没有痛。那我为什么要使用牙线？
A: A lot of people wonder if flossing is even necessary, especially if you can’t see any food stuck in between your teeth. Before we get into the answer, let me first ask you this: how bad is it not to vacuum underneath your bed, even if you’re cleaning the rest of your room? How quickly does the dust build up? Have you seen the dust bunnies under the bed? When do you begin to start breathing in that dust? When do mites start growing in that dust? The dust building up under your bed is a lot like what’s going on in your mouth right now.
答：很多人都觉得使用牙线不是必要的特别是当没有食物塞在牙缝间。在我们回答这问题前，让我问你：当你清理完你的房间的各个角落后，却没有清理你床底下的尘埃，那是不是遭透了？那些尘埃产生是不是非常的快？你有没有见过床底下铺满厚如纸皮般的尘埃？什么时候你会开始吸进这些肮脏的尘埃？尘埃里的螨虫什么时候开始生长？是的，那些你床底下的不断累积尘埃就好像你嘴里的不断累积的牙食情况一样。
By not flossing, you are in denial that your brushing is doing a 100% job. As you read this, colonies of bacteria are setting up camp and reproducing in between your teeth and below the gum line — where a toothbrush cannot physically reach. Even if you can’t see them, the bacteria are still there — they’re microscopic and invisible to the human eye. Every day that you don’t floss, these little colonies of bacteria are colonizing and creating a firm foothold onto the sides of your roots, teeth, and gums.The body sees this buildup of bacteria as an invasion, so it sends in its paratroopers to fight it off.
如果你没有使用牙线，那你就没法达到100%有效及干净的刷牙。你知道吗，当你在读着这篇文章的时候，你嘴里的细菌已经开始搭起营地，并不断地在你嘴里繁殖哦！它们喜欢躲在牙齿间及牙龈边沿，因为这些都是牙刷无法到达的地方。虽然你看不见它们，但它们确实存在的。如果你每天都只是刷牙而不用牙线清理齿间，那么这些你肉眼看不到的细菌将开始在你的牙齿及牙根部间繁殖，筑起它们坚硬的立足处。
This inflammatory response leads to an eating away of the collagen, fibers and bone that support the teeth! The gum and the bone are the foundation of the teeth, so when they are destroyed, teeth become loose and fall out. If you take away the foundation of a house, it collapses. This chronic inflammatory reaction is also connected to systemic diseases like diabetes, heart disease, rheumatoid and many others.
So, how bad is it not to floss? When do you want to interfere and slow this process that’s happening inside your mouth? The answer is, today!
而我们的身体在发现了这些外来者（细菌）的入侵后，将会发送精兵部队应敌。这些精兵部队与细菌们之间的战争，这就是我们称之为发炎的情况。发炎会使支撑我们牙齿的周围结构如纤维，及骨头将不断的被摧毁。牙龈及牙周围的骨头就好比支撑着高楼大厦的地基一样, 支撑着我们的牙齿，让我们的牙齿能屹立不倒。如果这些地基没了，那我们的牙齿将开始失去支撑，然后松脱。不仅如此，这种慢性发炎的情况也跟我们身体的一些疾病如糖尿病，心脏病，关节炎等有关联。
所以你看没使用牙线是不是很糟糕呢？那你什么时候要开始干扰，或减缓这些情况在你的嘴里发生呢？没错，就从今天开始！
Q：How to use floss? 牙线应该怎样使用呀？
A: Flossing isn't easy. People used to calls it “the most difficult personal grooming activity there is.” But practice makes perfect. Here’s how you do it:
- Start with about 18 inches of floss. Wrap most of it around the middle finger of one hand, the rest around the other middle finger.
- Grasp the floss tightly between your thumbs and forefingers, and use a gentle shoeshine motion to guide it between teeth.
- When the floss reaches the gum line, form a C shape to follow the contours of the tooth.
- Hold the floss firmly against the tooth, and move the floss gently up and down.
- Repeat with the other tooth, and then repeat the entire process with the rest of your teeth, “unspooling” fresh sections of floss as you go along.
Don’t forget to floss the backs of your last molars. By far, most gum disease and most decay occurs in the back teeth
牙线并不容易使用。大家常说：使用牙线是这世界上唯一最难的个人护理。但是记得，世上无难事，只要多多练习，它其实并不是你想象中的那么难。快来把它学起来吧！
- 首先抽出大概18尺寸长的牙线，用你的中指将牙线的两端卷起中间留下大概5寸长的牙线。
- 然后，用你的拇指与食指捏着牙线，留下中间大概1寸长的牙线牙线一定要绷紧。
- 像拉锯一样在牙齿之间轻轻地拉动牙线。注意，不要将牙线拉到脆弱的牙龈组织上。
- 当拉到牙龈线时，将牙线贴合牙齿弯成“C”形，然后缓缓滑入牙齿和牙龈的缝隙中。
- 将牙线从牙龈向外沿着牙齿的侧面刮，顺着牙齿侧边的轮廓从底部向顶部刮，尽可能多地清除牙菌斑。拉出牙线后，改用一段干净的牙线清洁另一边的牙齿。
- 别忘了清洁最里面一颗牙的后侧，包括上牙和下牙。
Q: I don't like to floss, it is so hard to handle the tiny floss inside my mouth. Any other way of doing it?
我不喜欢用牙线，真的很难用。有没有其他的方法呢？
A：Many tooth-cleaning options exist for people whose manual dexterity is compromised by poor coordination, hand pain, paralysis, and amputations -- or simply by fingers that are too big to fit inside the mouth.
One option is to use floss holders. These disposable plastic Y-shaped devices (some equipped with a spool of floss) hold a span of floss between two prongs to allow one-handed use.
其实，市场上也有其他的牙缝间清理工具给那些手不灵巧的人使用，比如那些手无法灵活控制，手疼，瘫痪和截肢的人-或甚至是那些手指太大，放不进嘴里的人。
其中一个选择是使用牙线夹(floss holder). 这些以Y型设计的牙线夹能夹着牙线，只需要一只手就能握着把柄清理牙齿间的牙食。
Q: Is flossing suitable for everyone?
牙线都适用于每个人吗？
A: If you have big gap between your teeth, floss is not suitable for you. You may need to use other types of interdental aids such as interdental brush, water floss, and single tuft brush.
如果你的牙齿的间距太大，牙线就不能有效地清理。牙齿间距太大的原因是因为牙龈病造成的牙龈萎缩。如果你有这问题，那你可能需要使用齿间清理器比如齿间牙刷 ( interdental brush),，水牙线冲洗器 (water floss)，及单簇牙刷(Single Tufted Brush).
Q: Why my gum bleed when i floss?
为什么我在用牙线清理时牙龈会流血？
A: Your gum bleed when you flossing your teeth because your gum are inflamed, Inflamed gum bleed easily when you touch it. But no worry, If you are not using it gently, it will help to remove the bacteria and plaques. Continue flossing, and the problem will stop after few days. If the problem persist, see the dentist and have a dental scaling.
当你使用牙线时，牙龈会流血这是因为你的牙龈正在发炎着。发炎中的牙龈只要轻轻一碰就容易流血。但是，千万不要因为流血而放弃使用牙线。相反地，你因该更加积极的使用牙线清理牙缝间的牙食，让牙龈恢复健康。如果你可以清理干净牙龈中的牙食，牙龈就会在几天后消炎。那么，你的健康牙龈就不会流血了。如果问题一直持续，那你因该是时候见牙医，牙医帮你洗牙后，问题就会迎刃而解了。
