Most cavities and periodontal disease begin between the teeth. While brushing is important, the bristles of your brush simply don’t reach between teeth. You must remove the plaque between your teeth at least once a day. That’s why your dentist recommends dental floss. All floss work almost the same way. Wind about 18 inches of floss around the middle fingers of each hand, leaving about five inches between your hands. Pinch the floss between your thumbs and index fingers and leave about one inch in between to work with. Gently guide the floss down between the teeth using a side to side motion. If your teeth are too tight to floss, or if it catches or tears, let your dentist know about it. These are problems that need to be fixed. If your gums are infected, they’ll bleed when you floss. That’s to be expected if you are just beginning to floss. After a week or so of regular flossing the bleeding should go away. See your dentist if it doesn’t.