Is Listerine good for gum disease?
September 1, 2020
Having been a victim of constant gum disease as well as a patient of chronic canker sores, I can assure you that Listerine is one of the best choices that you have if you’re planning to deal with these.
Why? There are a lot of factors, as we shall enumerate in today’s article.
[So, make sure that you keep reading to find out more!]
If you’re actually looking forward to keeping up or even increasing your Oral Hygiene, using a mouthwash is a great idea. Among the mouthwashes, Listerine is one of the best choices that you can actually choose to go with.
Is Listerine good for gum disease?
As I remarked earlier, these are some of the problems that I’ve actually suffered from quite a few times, and some of them, canker sores for instance are more of a chronic problem for me.
Listerine is good because of several reasons:
- Density/Intensity: While I have tried out several mouthwashes including renowned ones such as from Colgate, they really aren’t as intense as Listerine and therefore don’t really work that effectively at the end of the day.
- Numbing the pain: Another great thing about Listerine is that it kind of numbs the pain once you use it, which means that you don’t have to worry about the pain in that spot or in your overall mouth for quite a while, which is a pretty good thing.
- Effective: It is also a really effective thing for when it comes to actually fighting with your bacteria. Quoting Listerine’s site,
It’s best to use LISTERINE® mouthwash twice daily, as directed. The FDA reports that the combination of ingredients in LISTERINE® mouthwash is “generally recognized as safe and effective,” and that LISTERINE® mouthwash is extremely effective in killing bacteria above the line as well as reducing sticky plaque film and early gum disease (gingivitis),which can lead to serious, advanced gum disease if left unattended (hence its powerful zing when you swish). Use LISTERINE® mouthwash twice daily for 24-hour protection from gum disease-causing bacteria.
Some of the drawbacks of Listerine
However, it’s not all upsides with Listerine either. Like everything else, Listerine also comes with its own set of limitations that you need to know about before you can make an informed shift to Listerine if you wish to.
The main limitations of Listerine might be summed up in the following points:
- Too Strong: A lot of people complain about the fact that Listerine is actually way too strong for them to use. While some of the products such as the one from Colgate are actually much lighter, Listerine is too strong.
- Burning Sensation: While this is part of the the overall numbing process, the burning sensation is a lot stronger with Listerine because of the fact that the overall solution is more dense, so that’s something you need to keep in mind as well.
- Not the best taste: On a personal level, I also feel like Listerine doesn’t really provide you with a great taste or aftertaste either. Sorry for keep bringing it up, but one of the reason I like Colgate’s product for my regular use (I mostly use Listerine when I have a canker sore) because of the fact that it doesn’t burn that much and has a nice taste.
So, after all, Is Listerine good for gum disease?
Well, at the end of the day, I think I’d just repeat what I said at the very beginning of the article- if you’re looking for a solution for gum problems and some other oral problems such as canker sores and want to take care of the problem and the pain at the same time, Listerine is one of the best choices available for you out there.
However, as we just saw, while Listerine is among the best choices for you out there for treating gum and oral problems, it really is no longer so once you go back to regularly using mouthwash for precaution. At that point, the other choices start to seem a lot better in the long run because of the fact that they simply have a more appealing taste.
Do you rinse your mouth after using Mouthwash?
A lot of people are in the habit of actually rinsing their mouth with water once they’ve used their mouthwash.
While this might often seem like a good idea because it gives you a little more relief from the burning sensation that some mouthwashes leave you with, it really isn’t.
This is not a good idea because the mouthwash actually has quite a bit of work that it does even after you have spit it out.
So, unless you want to miss out on the rest of the job that the Mouthwash is actually intended to do, it is really recommended that you do not rinse your mouth with water after using mouthwash.
Tooth Advocates has already prepared an entire article for you about this detailing the main reasons as to why you might want to avoid rinsing your mouth with water after using a mouthwash- click here to check out our article right here at Tooth Advocates!
Tooth Advocates is here for you.
Thank you for taking your time to read till the end of today’s article. I really hope that I could bring to you the information that you came seeking and that you would be able to use it to make your overall experience in taking care of your dental and oral health better.
I understand that you might still have a couple of questions for me. And trust me, I’d be more than glad to have them- so please feel to throw them at me if there’s any question on your mind.
Thank you once again for taking your time till the very end to read my article in its entirety. I really hope to be back to you again soon with another article just as awesome as this one, and I hope to have you there with me. Until we meet again on our next article, Tooth Advocates wishes you a great day!