Sometimes pieces of food and meat fibers can get lodged between your teeth or in your gum line while you are eating. Most of the time, it’s mundane and you can rinse them away with lukewarm salt water or antiseptic mouthwash. This situation could be more serious if you have a bad habit of chewing on objects like pencils and pens and a fragment of the foreign object breaks off.
Even if you’re feeling pressure, discomfort, or pain from something lodged in your gums, you need to keep a cool head. Acting hastily can sometimes turned a minor problem into something more significant.
Don’t use toothpicks or sharp, pointed tools to pry the object out of your gum line. This could seriously injure your gums or even damage your teeth. If your gums are bleeding, rinsing your mouth with lukewarm salt water can help soothe the injured tissues. This might also help to loosen the object.
In most situations like this, the first thing you want to reach for is waxed dental floss. The wax coating on the strand can help it slide in and around things easier than unwaxed floss. Be sure not to force the floss into place, as it could seriously injure your gums.
If waxed dental floss can’t dislodge the object you could try dental fountain or oral water jet.
If you still can’t easily remove the object you can call Ohio Urgent Dental Care at 614-875-7070 to schedule an appointment with our dentists in Grove City, Ohio.