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Date Posted:01:30:50 11/03/02 Sun In reply to:
Main Category
's message, "Dental Floss" on 00:22:47 11/03/02 Sun
When I first started stocking up on supplies, I decided I may as well have floss at work as well as home, so I wound up with a package of Oral-B SuperFloss at work, and Glide Threader Floss at home. I've since realized that I don't really need it at work, with the result that I'm now able to give a head-to-head comparison of the two.
Both products come in similar boxes, about four inches by two inches. The Threader Floss, like most Glide floss products, is significantly more expensive - twice as much per box, until you read the fine print. The SuperFloss box holds 50, the Threader Floss 30, so really the Glide is closer to three times as expensive.
When you open the boxes, you'll see why. Each Threader Floss is individually wrapped. The SuperFloss, once you figure out the package, comes in a plastic bag that can be arranged so taht it dispenses much like a box of tissues. I can see how it might be convenient to grab a few of the individually wrapped flossers, either for a trip or to keep on your person, but really, the box isn't all that big.
The flossers themselves have the same basic idea - one end made stiff, so that it can be threaded under the archwire. But that's the only similarity. The SuperFloss has a stiff end, a spongy section, then a regular section. The spongy section is intended for cleaning the brackets. The regular section seems to be some fairly fine waxed floss. I found it difficult to figure out where one section ended and the next began. Accidentally getting the spongy section threaded through my tight teeth is no fun. I also had the floss get caught up on my molar tubes, and start shredding on me. I may have some shreds stuck there until the molar bands come off. Finally, the stiff end isn't all that stiff. It's ok for my front teeth, but I have a very hard time threading it between the first molar and second bicuspid (making me very grateful I don't have bands on my second molars).
The Glide Threader Floss seems to be the same monofilament product they sell as regular floss, with one end made significantly stiffer, I think with was. I found it much, much easier to do the threading, though it could poke the gums if you weren't careful. Since the floss is all the same, it doesn't have the problem that the SuperFloss has of being forced to do all the flossing with the same short segment. And as a monofilament, it goes more easily through my teeth without shredding.
Bottom line: You get what you pay for. I don't like the extra packaging that comes with Glide product, and at about 20 cents/day it's not cheap, but I find it so much easier to use, that I'll probably stick with it.
The SuperFloss works, and when I finally get my braces off and switch to a bonded lingual lower retainer, I'll probably also switch to the SuperFloss, as it's softer threader will be kindre on the floor of my mouth.
Addendum:
I must add that I erred about the Glide Threader Floss in two ways. First, it's more like a tape than their regular floss. (I've never used the Glide Tape Floss, so I can't be sure.)
Second, it's possible to shred it, too. The space between one of my banded molars and the bicuspid, combined with all the junk on the band (tubes and hook outside, cleats and hook lingually) makes it really tough to floss without getting caught. I'm really tempted to get some regular Glide (which is what I always used before braces) and floss threaders to see if that works better than these newfangled sorts.
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