How to use dental floss to get off a ring, Dental floss is an excellent tool for removing rings that are stuck on your fingers. If you’ve ever found yourself with a ring that won’t slip off, we’re here to help!
The first thing you’ll want to do is wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water. Then, take a piece of floss and wrap it around the base of your finger where the ring sits. Place the middle finger of your other hand between the two ends of dental floss and pull firmly until the ring slips off. You may need to twist your finger slightly as you pull in order to remove it easily.
Read on to learn more about How To Use Dental Floss To Get Off A Ring
How To Use Dental Floss To Get Off A Ring
Did you know that impossibly stuck rings are no match for common dental floss and a paper clip. This low-cost home remedy has become a favorite topic on YouTube and promises to save many a precious keepsake from a costly repair or premature demise.
We bet you know someone who’s finger became so swollen that a wedding band or engagement ring had to be snapped off with a ring cutter. But, the next time you’re confronted by a ring that won’t budge, try this solution. Thirty inches of dental floss.
The internet is teeming with self-help videos that demonstrate a simple, inexpensive, quick and painless way of getting mis-sized rings to come off. Here’s the concept: By tightly wrapping dental floss around the soft tissue of the finger, the ring has just enough room to advance over the knuckle.
In a video viewed by more than 3.7 million YouTube fans, the folks at UrbanHowToDo outline a step-by-step method that removes rings in minutes. The only tools necessary are a roll of dental floss and a small nail file or paper clip. (Caution: A doctor told us that this method will restrict the blood flow to the finger and should be completed quickly — in less than five minutes.)
• The first step is to take 2 1/2 feet of dental floss and lay one end parallel with the stuck ring.
• Then, using a small nail file or a paper clip, push the end of the dental floss under the ring (from the finger side to the palm side). Be extremely careful not to poke your skin. The video actually shows the use of a safety pin, which is potentially dangerous and not recommended.
• When the floss emerges on the palm side of the ring, pull through six inches and leave two feet of floss on the finger side. Hold the shorter end under your thumb to secure it in place.
• Then use the longer length of floss to tightly wrap the finger, starting close to the ring and working up past the knuckle. If the ring is extremely tight, the wraps need to be very close together.
• At the end of the two-foot length, create a loop and tuck the end under the loop to secure it.
• To remove the ring, grab the end of the six-inch length and slowly pull the floss through from the finger side to the palm side.
• The ring will start to move up the finger toward the knuckle, wobbling back and forth with the unwinding of each wrap. As soon as it passes the knuckle, it should easily slide off.
Other YouTube videos provide variations on this method. Some recommend starting the floss wrapping from the finger above the knuckle and moving down toward the ring. The justification is that the blood should be moving away from the extremity. In another video, the doctor uses string instead of dental floss.
We must emphasize that this method may not work for every person and every type of ring. Rings with large center stones that jut out from the mounting tend to get hung up in the dental floss and make the process much tougher.
Also, some rings can get so tight (especially after an injury) that medical intervention is advised.
Nevertheless, YouTube viewers have written glowing reviews, and comments are nearly universally positive.
One YouTube user who suffered from the discomfort of a stuck ring for 10 years wrote the following and posted a video of a successful attempt to duplicate the “How To” solution: “My ring… has been … irremovable for at least 10 years. Not a chance, will never come off! So my wonderful friend Colleen says, “Just YouTube ‘ring removal with dental floss.’ And here are the magical results! This video is dedicated to my beautiful friend. You are AWESOME!
Best floss for braces
For most patients of My Family Dentistry, Invisalign aligners are preferable to metal braces for a number of reasons, including comfort and appearance.
However, metal braces are the right decision for some people, like younger children who may have trouble consistently wearing removable aligners. If you or your child has metal braces, you need to be sure you’re using the best flossing tools for braces to protect the health of your gums and teeth while they’re being straightened.
Flossing is a particular challenge for people with braces. The metal brackets and wires can get in the way of the floss, preventing you from easily cleaning in between teeth. If you want your teeth to be not only straight, but healthy and stain-free, you need to be sure to floss daily as well as brush thoroughly.
The 4 Best Flossing Tools for Braces:
#4 – Typical Floss with Threaders
You can still use regular floss with your braces, but a little extra help from a floss threader will make things much easier. You simply thread the floss through the threader, thread the floss around the wire and between teeth, floss, and repeat the process between each subsequent tooth. This process may be a little time-consuming, but it’s cheap and effective. There are a number of great brands of floss threaders available, including Dentek, Plackers, GUM, and Crest.
#3 – Oral-B Super Floss
Especially designed for use with braces, Oral-B Super Floss is a step up from using a floss threader. Super Floss is made from a piece of regular floss. At one end, there is a stiff piece of plastic, no bigger than the floss, but rigid enough to insert between your teeth. This plastic end allows you to quickly and easily insert the floss between teeth around braces wire, floss, and then move on to the next area. This product also includes a small area of “spongy” floss between the plastic threader and the regular floss, which allows you to clean further down under the gum line and around brackets and wires to remove more plaque and food particles before you brush.
#2 – AirFloss
The Sonicare AirFloss is a great choice for kids (or adults!) who have trouble taking the time to floss. In about 60 seconds, it can clean your entire mouth with bursts of air, and there’s no string to get caught in your braces. It’s not as inexpensive as floss threaders or Super Floss, but if you dread flossing, it will help you spend less time in front of the bathroom mirror without sacrificing your oral health.
#1 – Waterpik Water Flosser
A water flossing system like Waterpik’s Water Flosser is also ideal for braces. These systems may have a higher up-front cost than plain floss, but they’re much more comfortable and effective than traditional floss, removing as much as 99.9% of plaque when used correctly. Dr. Mullins thinks that water flossers are actually the best flossing tools for braces, because they make it so easy and comfortable to clean your teeth thoroughly!
No matter which flossing solution you choose, it is imperative to floss regularly to keep your teeth healthy. If you don’t, you may have unsightly stains or even damage when you have your braces removed!
Not flossing with braces
If you or your child wears traditional metal braces, then your orthodontist likely stresses the importance of brushing and flossing every day to maintain good dental health. However, like many braces wearers, you may find flossing such a challenge that you skip this step in your oral hygiene routine on occasion or even neglect it completely.
Unfortunately, no matter how well you brush, you should always floss at least once a day. Flossing helps remove plaque from between teeth and below the gumline that is difficult to remove with a toothbrush alone. If you do not remove this plaque on a daily basis, then you could develop gum disease or cavities between your teeth.
Read on to learn four tips that make it easier to floss while you wear braces.
1. Use the Right Traditional Flossing Tools
One of the most time-tested and affordable ways to floss your teeth while you wear braces is to use traditional dental floss combined with a special device called a dental floss threader.
Check the label of your floss to ensure that it is waxed and not unwaxed floss. Unwaxed floss can shred when it rubs against braces wires and brackets, while waxed floss tends to glide over them smoothly.
Braces floss threaders are small loops of very stiff floss. They resemble large sewing needles. If you have difficulty maneuvering dental floss underneath your braces’ wires, you might accomplish the task much more easily with the aid of a stiff floss threader.
To use a floss threader, simply connect your floss to the loop, as you would thread a sewing needle, then use the threader to thread the floss under your braces’ wires as you floss instead of attempting to do it with your fingers.
2. Look for Orthodontic Flossers
If you enjoyed the use of floss picks — small pieces of dental floss attached to small plastic handles — before you obtained braces, then you will be happy to hear that there are similar flossing tools made specifically for braces wearers.
Traditional floss picks have wide handles that are impossible to maneuver under braces wires, but orthodontic floss picks are attached to very narrow handles that often slide right under braces’ wires. Many braces wearers not only find these floss picks much easier to use than traditional floss but also find that they make flossing a much quicker task.
3. Try an Interdental Cleaner
If you would like to skip the traditional dental floss altogether, then you may want to try one of the many different interdental cleaners available today.
Some interdental cleaners are short, thin sticks made of a stiff, yet flexible material called polypropylene. You simply glide these short sticks between your teeth to remove tartar and food particles.
Other interdental cleaners, called interdental brushes, consist of thin, flexible wires with short bristles attached to them. You slide these brushes between your teeth and under the gum line to remove plaque. These brushes come in many diameters meant to perform different dental cleaning tasks, so be sure to choose a brush with a very small diameter to avoid damaging your teeth or gums.
4. Consider a Water Flosser
Another way to clean between your teeth and under your gum line when you wear braces is to use a water flosser. Water flossers project thin streams of water on and between your teeth. Water flossers can be used to remove plaque between teeth and under the gum line, just as traditional dental floss does.