Teeth in the News: Friends Don’t Let Friends go on Stage Without Flossing
Even if you didn’t watch the Grammy’s on Sunday night, you probably heard the hubbub about Nick Jonas singing with food in his teeth. Several close-up shots during the Jonas Brothers’ performance showed a nice piece of some leafy green stuck in between two of his upper teeth.
Nick played it off well, tweeting “At least you know I eat my greens!” Yeah, Nick, but we also know that you didn’t floss.
So what can we learn from Nick Jonas’s embarrassing salad smile?
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Floss.
Obviously.
We tell y’all to floss all the time. But can we just say that there are some times that it’s REALLY important to floss? Like before a photo shoot, an important speech, or a Grammy performance . . .
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Tell your friends to floss.
Be the friend that tells the truth. When you see something, say something. Letting people walk around with food visibly stuck in their teeth is not friendship.
Carry floss with you and offer a piece to those who need it. Heck, offer it to anyone. We all need it!
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If you don’t have floss, swish with water.
Unless the food is seriously wedged into place , you might be able to dislodge it with a vigorous swish. Flossing is faster, but water works . . . sometimes.
When you realize how hard it is to unstick food with just water, and your tongue is sore from the acrobatics you’ve been doing to try to dislodge the food, you’ll start carrying floss.
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Ask someone if you have anything in your teeth.
You just might have to take the initiative and ask if there is anything in your teeth. It would be nice if people would just tell you, but you’re intimidating. You’re even more intimidating if you’re famous. Add it to your checklist before going on stage for any kind of performance.
- Bats in the cave?
- Food in your teeth?
- Pants securely zipped?
- Toilet paper stuck to your shoe?
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Know which foods are most likely to get stuck.
There are certain foods that are highly likely to find great little hiding spots in your smile. We know because even dentists get food stuck in their teeth. And of course, it seems to be healthier foods that love to lodge in the nooks and crannies. It’s never the bag of salt and vinegar chips you just scarfed down . . .
It’s typically healthy fruits and veggies that cause our embarrassing smile moments.
- Spinach (OBVI Nick . . .)
- Strawberry seeds
- Broccoli buds (Yep. They’re called buds. We looked it up.)
- Coarsely ground black pepper
So maybe don’t serve these at your wedding dinner. Or make sure the maid of honor has your floss.
Do You Have a Spot that is Constantly Catching Food?
If you notice that you’re consistently getting all kinds of food (not just tiny broccoli buds) stuck between your teeth, talk to Dr. Ann and Dr. Lauren about it at your next visit. There are usually ways to change the shape of the area catching food and prevent not only the embarrassing photo ops, but also gum disease and cavities caused by chronic food impaction. It may require adding some perfectly-matched tooth-colored filling material or moving the teeth with Invisalign. Dr. Ann and Dr. Lauren will go over every option available to you.
Call Designer Smiles today if you have more questions about flossing, food getting stuck, or anything else dental. Please don’t ask us about the Jonas Brothers. All we know is that Nick had food in his teeth during the Grammy’s 2020.