Why Do My Gums Hurt When I Floss?

Patients often experience gum pain when flossing. When they ask us why, our staff at Enterprise Dental Care Mitchellville, MD typically answer, “maybe you are flossing or brushing too hard or too many times a day”.

If this is the case, use a more gentle brushing technique and just floss once a day. If your gums still continue to hurt let’s talk about some of the not so serious reasons for gum pain. Now, if these don't apply give us a call. 

Call 301-249-3333 or Contact Us to make an appointment. 

Reasons for Gum Pain

Maybe you have a canker sore. Typically it’s a small red bump. It also can be covered by a white coating. They can be painful, but they don’t last long. However, if you have one that doesn’t disappear within two weeks please call Enterprise Dental Care, your Mitchellville-Bowie dentist. 

Did you burn the interior of your mouth by eating piping hot pizza or drinking scalding hot coffee? Again, this is nothing to worry about except you have to suffer the pain of burned gums or the roof of your mouth.  Surprisingly, this happens to a lot of our patients. 

Another issue relates to women only. Menstruation and pregnancy can cause hormonal fluctuations. These changes affect a lot of areas of the body including gums. Gum tissue can become swollen, red and tender but this is temporary and resolves on its own.

The more serious issues concern oral cancer and gum disease. 

Oral cancer can show up as a sore. Sometimes the sore is painful and in other cases the sore is not painful. Oral cancer can affect the gums, cheeks, throat and tongue. Successful treatment is more likely the sooner we catch it. It’s why your six month dental cleaning visits include an oral cancer screening by our hygeniest. 

The other serious cause of gum pain is gum disease. If you are bleeding when flossing look for these other signs. Are your gums tender or swollen? Do you have bad breath that you can’t get rid of? Are your gums receding? Are any teeth loose? 

If you don’t treat gum disease you risk losing more teeth, and increasing your odds of heart disease, kidney disease, certain cancers, and Alzheimer’s.

The advice from everyone here at Enterprise Dental Care is to note any gum pain you may have. Watch for it to resolve itself. Call us if it doesn't.

Call 301-249-3333 or Contact Us to make an appointment. We’re in the Bowie-Mitchellville, MD community.