For some weeks, water flossers have been the hot commodity on TikTok.
A handy, amateur version of what a dentist would use for scaling. Every content creator swears by them including the apparent professionals who claim they’ve ditched flossing string entirely. I’m not easily swayed by a fad let alone whatever’s gone viral on the TikTok shop but these looked interesting. So, against my better judgement, I ordered one to give it a go.
I was happy to only spend £9.99 on the flosser, formally known as a Portable Electric Oral Irrigator. It arrived in a typical three business day fashion so there wasn’t a problem ordering from the platform. It arrived in a pretty chic box accompanied by several nozzles specifically created for areas of the mouth. I filled the flosser’s basin with water and gave it a quick squirt to test the pressure – it was strong.
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Ready to go with the standard nozzle, I gave it a whirl and in moments the bathroom was soaked. As soon as it hit my teeth the water splashed straight back out. A fair bit remained in my mouth but quickly turned into a waterfall over the sink. Despite my best attempts, it went everywhere.
I changed the setting to the lowest of three pressure options and repositioned myself over the sink to minimise the splash zone. This time was easier but the force was still uncomfortable to deal with. Fewer than 30 seconds passed and it was already time to refill the machine’s water basin. Readying myself for a third attempt, I gave it another chance, ignoring the accompanying mess and force.
The flosser works. My mouth and gumline felt noticeably different but a large part of that sensation was thanks to being blasted with cold water and less from actually cleaning. No matter how far I held my head over the sink the splashback would still get everywhere. The only safe bet would be to use it in the shower if you don’t want to turn your bathroom into a wetroom. If you have sensitive gums this may not be for you as throughout the experience I thought, “this is quite sore.”
Overall, the experience was fidgety and messy, and in no way improved upon my standard flossing routine. The flosser isn’t a falsely advertised product, though. The description says it will blast high-pressure water around your mouth and it certainly does. I just can’t see myself ever using it again.
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