Now entering the ring: One thin, plastic floss pick, looking like a fairy-sized lyre with a bitty handle. It’s got about an inch of floss to beat back plaque. Can it do it?!
And in the other corner: About 18 inches of soft, scrubby floss with a loofah-like weave, infused with coconut oil — and does it smell good too? Yes, folks. It’s Cocofloss, the string-floss champion.
This smackdown won’t last long. When it comes to cleaning your grin and being kind to our planet, there’s a clear winner. Read on to see why string floss, especially Cocofloss, knocks out the floss-pick competition (with one wee exception).
Size Matters: Unspool 18 Inches for a Total Clean
We get it. Floss picks are convenient to carry around. When you’ve just eaten a garlicky caesar salad on a first date, you wanna be prepared for a quick bathroom refresh. But here’s the problem: One inch of floss just doesn’t cut it if you want to keep bad bacteria (and bad breath) at bay.
You need to use a fresh section of floss between each pair of teeth. Otherwise, bacteria and stinky bits of food can hitch a ride around your mouth, leaving new areas vulnerable to decay. Yuck.
Don’t scrub gunk off one pair of teeth only to rub it onto the next. Instead, use about 18 inches of Cocofloss — about the width between your shoulders — to keep your smile completely clean. As you floss, move along the strand, using a new section of floss for each tooth space. Get step-by-step instructions …
KNOCKOUT: Floss picks fail the clean-floss test. Cocofloss wins.
(We’d like to suggest Cocofloss Minis for those on-the-go floss emergencies. They fit in a pocket or a purse and still can unspool a full 18 inches.)
“C” is for Cleansing
Plaque doesn’t just stay put between your teeth. It can wrap around the tooth surface, casting a ghastly yellowish glow on those pearly whites. Boo!
To remove plaque when you floss, you should give each tooth a snug, “C”-shaped hug. Then shimmy the floss up and down your tooth, venturing gently just below the gumline.
With floss picks, it’s nearly impossible to bend the taut floss around each tooth. Nobody likes wimpy hugs, especially if they leave grody stuff behind. Plus, floss picks’ rigid shape can make it tricky to slide below the gumline to get out harmful gram-negative bacteria.
KNOCKOUT: If “C” is for “cleansing,” then string floss rules the school. Floss picks fail. Cocofloss wins.
Pick of the Litter
Like befuddled backpackers who’ve wandered far off the map, floss picks can now be found in sidewalk cracks, gutters, and even playground equipment everywhere. The use-em-and-lose-em dental tools have become such common sightings all over urban areas that columnists in Boston and Philadelphia even took to the page to rant against them.
People seem to feel they can floss while they walk, and then drop their bad-bacteria ridden, polystyrene-plastic flossers on the ground as though they’re planting a cavity seed.
Even if floss picks are disposed of properly, they’re still prime examples of single-use plastics. We need to do better for our one-and-only planet.
Enter Cocofloss: Woven from recycled water bottles, Cocofloss takes an eco-conscious approach to cleaning your smile. Using recycled plastic not only saves landfill space, it also helps conserve natural resources. The recycled strands take 64% less energy to make, compared with non-recycled threads. This results in 32% less CO2 emissions and 94% less water consumption.
More good news: Starting in 2022, Cocofloss will make its dispensers with ~95% recycled plastic.
Those Cocofloss dispensers are also refillable, so you can double-up on reusing and recycling while you brighten your smile. Refills are shipped in 100% compostable packaging — for some honest-to-goodness seed planting.
KNOCKOUT: Floss picks fail at eco-conscious oral care. Cocofloss wins! Learn more about our dedication to becoming more sustainable …
The Wee Exception
Newbie flossers — especially those in the 10 and under set — might not yet have the dexterity to properly floss in hard-to-reach areas of the mouth. But once two baby teeth touch, it's time to floss.)
“Children don’t have the fine motor skills to floss their own teeth with string floss, and parents’ fingers are too big to comfortably floss them.” explains Cocofloss co-founder and dentist Chrystle Cu. “This usually means kids’ teeth only get flossed by their dental hygienist, and they don’t build the important preventive habit of flossing at home. Until kids can floss on their own, adults can use floss picks to help their children floss their teeth.”
Tot Tip: Whether you’re flossing your kid’s teeth with a pick or with a string, get set for flossy success. Sit down cross-legged and have your kiddo lay down with their head in your lap (perpendicular to you). This allows you to sorta be the dental chair and it makes it much easier to floss their teeth. Then turn your floss session into playtime with music, games, and a silly sense of humor.
8 … 9 … 10 … Cocofloss Knocks Out the Competition
There’s no contest when it comes to packing punches on plaque. Cocofloss wallops floss picks in its efficacy, flexibility, and eco-friendliness. Don’t mess around with flimy picks. Get the Floss Champion of the World: Cocofloss.
