I've got an appointment for a cleaning at my Dentist in a month or two. It's been a while. I had a bad experience during a root canal a few years ago, back in the day when it required multiple visits. During the third visit the bit stopped in my tooth and the tooth snapped above the gumline, so instead of a composite filling I needed a crown. Well that experience made me put off my dental appointments. I've got a new dentist now. I bought a waterpik to attempt to do my own cleaning before I get the real deal. Man.. if you buy the portable unit and use the deep cleaning nozzle it really works well! I mixed a table spoon of hydrogen peroxide, a cup of listerine, and topped it off with water. I blasted between the teeth and gumline, blasted down into the gums, blasted on the inside gumline. I wish I bought this puppy earlier, flossing never did a job like this and with one bathroom in my house I never had the time to floss right. Now that I'm older it's more important. If you want to prevent gingivitis and periodontal disease, I highly recommend one of these!
