Of course, every human body is different. There is no one thing that will work 100% of the time for 100% of the people, but if you use your Hydro Floss properly, I think you have a pretty good chance.
Always be under the care of your dentist or periodontist. You should definitely get your regular checkups and cleanings. They can also measure and inform you of your periodontal pocket depths.
You may have to ask. They might also be surprised that you know what they are. But, these numbers are critical to your dental well-being. So, you should know what they are.
What you do at home is the most important aspect to protecting your dental health and avoiding costly and painful problems in the future.
Many people indeed feel some pain when their gums are being probed. But don't blame your dentist!
The fact of the matter is, you gums should not feel pain when they are probed for periodontal pocket depths. You actually, really should not feel it.
If you feel like your gums are being stabbed by a pointy needle, it may be a sign that your gums are diseased. You can ask your dentist for verification.
Gum disease is like that. You may not have bleeding gums or you may - that is a classic sign of gum disease. But you can still have gum disease even if your gums don't bleed.
This sharp stabbing feeling is likely a result of diseased tissue. When your gums are healthy, normal probing should not elicit pain.
What Can You Do About This?
The first thing to do is ask your dentist what your periodontal pocket depths are. Generally speaking, they should be 3mm or less.
If they are above that, generally speaking again, most dentists will say that your gums are not healthy (diseased).
Therefore, your goal should be to get them to 3mm and below, everywhere in your mouth!
What Can You Do To End This?
There may not be one thing that works 100% of the time for 100% of the people, so you will always want your dentist to check those pocket depths on every regular checkup and cleaning.
This video is all about generalized information. If you have a specific question about your unique dental health situation, be sure to talk to your periodontist about that.
The Hydro Floss is a powerful tool that has really helped a lot of people over the last 20 Plus years. Yet, it remains relatively 'hidden' from the limelight.
My personal experience is that it helped me to avoid an expensive gum treatment and it helped my gums to become healthy again.
Of course, your dentist or hygienist will be able to easily verify your results by measuring your periodontal pocket depths after using the Hydro Floss "effectively". I suggest reading: How to Use Your Hydro Floss Effectively on this site.
What if you know you have deep periodontal pockets? Maybe your dental hygienist and or dentist told you so?
Are you stuck feeling that your only hope is an expensive and potentially painful treatment? (Anesthetic wears-off after all)
What about the long term effects of such treatments? Always get full disclosure about a treatment and the possible side-effects. If you don't ask, you might not be told.
Working With Your Dentist
You definitely want to continue working with your dentist or find a new one. You'll need them anyway to verify or disprove your progress. So stick with your dentist or get a new one. In either case, be under the care of one.
What's The Scoop On These Gum Pockets (Periodontal Pocket Depths) ?
Generally speaking any pockets above 3mm are considered 'unhealthy' by most dental professionals.
Therefore, generally speaking, you want all of your pockets to be 3mm and below.
Shrinking Them
Shrinking these pockets basically means making the gum tissue healthy again. So, more brushing and flossing can certainly help and should be done. But are they going to be enough? If they were enough, why do so many people still have gum problems?
Many people, including myself, have had good luck with the Hydro Floss Oral Irrigator. My pockets shrunk and my gums became healthier. My dentist actually told me, "whatever you are doing, keep it up".
I tried other things before the Hydro Floss, but the Hydro Floss was what worked the best and most effectively for me. For others too! No two people are the same, so you can only be sure by testing it. But, I would say it works for a LOT of people.
The Test To See If It Works For You
This is where your dental office comes in. You will be having them validate your progress or lack thereof.
Then go back to your dentist and have them measure your pocket depths. Seeing Improvement? GREAT. Keep it up.
If not, then you know it didn't work for you and something more or something else is needed. But, I think the chances are really good that you'll see improvement.
In any case, your dentist is the one to ask about specific questions regarding your unique situation. Get your dentist or hygienist to tell you if those pockets have shrunk or not. Then you'll know for sure if it worked for you.
We all know that you have plenty of patients that need help with their periodontal health!
That is going to be a fact no matter where your practice is located.
So, here is a little test you can do. Once you see the results for yourself, you will want to help all of your patients.
Take a patient's current periodontal pocket readings. If they are a 'problem' patient, put them on the Hydro Floss Oral Irrigator.
Have them use the Hydro Floss twice per day with two full reservoirs per use (four reservoirs per day) for at least one month.
Then, measure those periodontal pockets again and see the results for yourself!
After that, you will want all of your patients to use the Hydro Floss.
If you patient doesn't currently have a Hydro Floss, I made a little card you can print out and give to them. It is nothing fancy. But, fancy would just eat up ink. This is cheap and simple. And it will be easy to give one to all of your patients.
Here is the very simple card you can give them:
Just right click on the image above and save to your computer for printing. OR:
Answer: It is relatively easy to use one. The best practice is to use a HydroFloss twice per day with two full reservoirs per use. What is a reservoir? It is the place where you put the water. (See picture) Four reservoirs per day? That sounds like a lot? No, it is not. At the full setting of the hydrofloss (number 9) you can drain a full tank in approximately 2 minutes and 10 seconds.
Therefore, you can drain all four reservoirs in under 10 minutes per day.
How do they measure these results? They take the measurement of your periodontal pocket depths. 3mm and below is considered healthy. Above 3mm, generally speaking is considered to be 'unhealthy'.
So, you take people who do not have a hydrofloss, measure their depths and then have them use the Hydro Floss properly for 1-2 months. Then you have a dentist or hygienist take those measurements again. Many people that previously had 4mm, 5mm or even greater pockets are seeing reductions in those depths.
If you can get all of your periodontal pocket depths to 3mm and below - as measured by a professional, generally speaking, they will believe your gums to be healthy at this point. Why are health gums important?
Gum disease currently affects up to 75% of the population - according to many dental professionals. Most have no idea they have gum disease. Gum disease is the number one cause of tooth loss.
This is another reason why it is important for you to know and understand the concept of periodontal pockets depths and what is healthy and what is not.
No treatment or remedy in this world will work 100% of the time for 100% of the people. That is just impossible. However, besides my personal experience and results, many others have also achieved good results from the Hydro Floss. Read more about the Hydro Floss now.
Now I want to make sure that I tell you about one of the most powerful
dental health prevention / promotion tools I know of. It is called
the Hydro Floss.
* I speak in general terms only on this site. Specific questions
about your unique dental health situation should be addressed by your
doctor or periodontist.
The Hydro Floss is a powerful tool for dental health and it has helped a lot of people shrink their periodontal pockets. Of course, no one can guarantee that because each human body is different. I can only tell you that it worked for me and has for others too.
You should still get your regular dental cleanings and checkups. The hygienist and / or dentist will measure your periodontal pocket depths because this is a good way to monitor your periodontal or gum health.
To put things in perspective, generally speaking, any pocket depths over 3mm are considered unhealthy. So, if you have a 6mm pocket, you may have gone well beyond the state of 'healthy'.
I think it was back around 2004 or 2005 that the hygienist told me I had many 4mm, a few 5mm and one 6mm pocket (if I remember that correctly). They recommended a 'deep cleaning' or SRP (scaling and root planing treatment). I wasn't overly fond of the idea.
I found the HydroFloss and used it a lot. When I went back, they told me my gums were looking better and whatever I was doing, I should keep it up. They didn't ask what I was doing, which I thought was interesting. I would think they would want to tell all of their patients. But, I guess not?
Periodontal Pockets
The measurement of a Periodontal Pocket is basically the measurement of how snugly the gum tissue adheres to the tooth. When the probe only goes about 3mm or less, they usually think of your gums as being healthy. Above that is a considered a problem.
If you don't shrink the pockets down, they may want to do more aggressive treatments on you. This could be a 'deep cleaning' or it could be more advanced surgery, depending on how bad the problem is.
Periodontal pockets are not the same as gum recession. They are two different measurements, so don't confuse them.
*Please be advised, that I speak in general terms only here. Specific questions about your unique dental health situation should be addressed by your periodontist or dentist. They can provide advice, diagnosis and treatment. This site, cannot and does NOT do that.
In addition, you should be getting regular cleanings and checkups with your dentist. Failure to do so, could lead to expensive problems!
* I speak in general terms only on this site. Specific questions
about your unique dental health situation should be addressed by your
doctor or periodontist.
The article mentions a connection between gum disease and pneumonia.
This does lend itself to common sense. If we have a rampant bacteria infection in the mouth, its fairly likely that some of those little beasties find their way to our lungs.
Not a big surprise.
Of course, researchers have been noticing some type of connection between gum disease and all kinds of health problems including heart disease, mouth cancer, diabetes, osteoporosis and others. Not much is completely conclusive. But many doctors today feel confident that the connections exist.
Controlling Periodontal Disease
Terminology explained. Gum Disease, Periodontal disease and gingivitis are all terms for various stages of the SAME disease process.
The culmination of this process leads to lost gum tissue, lost supporting bone, loose teeth and finally a tooth or teeth falling out or needing to be pulled.
So, it pays to control this problem. How do you do it?
One of the key points you have probably never been told (as a patient) are the periodontal pocket depths. These relatively objective measurements can tell you where the health of your gums are at.
You ask your hygienist or dentist to measure them on EVERY visit for a cleaning and checkup.
Ideal pocket depths are 3mms (millimeters) and below. If your numbers are getting better at each visit, that's awesome. You know you are headed in the right direction.
One tool that I have personally found to be helpful (and many other people too) is this one
Good hygienists and dentists that care about their patients already know about this tool. And they tell their patients to get it.
By controlling your periodontal pocket depths, generally speaking, you are controlling, limiting and preventing any further damage.
Success in this area could very well mean that you get to keep your teeth (or the rest of them) for a lifetime of good service.
So Study Up On This Tool Today - if you are an individual, it may help you. If you are a doctor, it may very well help your patients reach and maintain periodontal health!
In either case, this information should be spread. Link to this page today and tell others about it.
*I speak in general terms only. If you have specific questions about your unique dental health situation, address those questions to your doctor or dentist.
Periodontal Pocket Depths Are Important Indicators Of YOUR Dental Health
If you do not know what these numbers are, you should ask your dentist. This is something that should be checked during every office visit. Although, it does appear that there are some clinics where these pocket depths are rarely if ever checked.
These Numbers Are Important
If they come out much above 3mm in multiple spots, there is a good chance that your dentist will want to perform a special treatment. Sometimes this takes the form of an SRP or 'deep cleaning' treatment. There could be other recommendations as well.
Personal Experience
I was in this situation a several years back. I did not have the deep cleaning done as I did not like the what it entailed. In the US, these treatments can also be quite expensive. Although, I have heard in other countries they may not cost nearly as much.
What I did use is a device called the Hydro Floss Oral Irrigator. When I returned to the dentist, she said that my gums looked a lot better, the periodontal pockets were down to about normal levels. She said: "Whatever you are doing, keep it up."
I have sinced talked to a lot of people over the last 4 or 5 years and I do hear similar stories from other people. Having said that, I must warn you that not every person or situation is the same and just because it worked for many does not guarantee it will work for everyone.
You must continue to work closely with your dental professional, they should be monitoring those periodontal pockets for you at every visit to see where you are at.
Shrinking The Pockets
You should, of course, get your regular dental cleanings 2 to 4 times per year or whatever your periodontist recommends. But why not use a powerful tool between office visits to help your periodontal (gum) tissue stay healthy.
The danger in deeper pockets is that there may be sufficient quantities of bacteria present to begin to destroy the supporting structure of your teeth. This can lead to gum recession, loose and finally lost teeth.
This is why the periodontal pocket depths are so important to you. Generally speaking, if you have them all at 3mm and below most dental health professionals will say that your gums are healthy.
You continue to work with your dentist on a regular basis, but you have just do things at home to make your dental health better. The device I mentioned above, I believe, can go a long way towards helping you as it has helped many others to do the same.
Maintaining
You can use the same tool to help you maintain your dental health. If you are able to get your gums healthy with this method then you should be able to maintain them there as well.
Of course, I speak in general terms only here. Specific questions about your unique dental health situation need to be addressed by your periodontist or dentist.
There are no absolute guarantees that any one thing will work for you. However, if you can help keep things healthy and avoid expensive and painful treatments, as well as lost teeth, wouldn't it all be more than worth it? I think so.
