ADA Offers New Advice on Brushing, Flossing, and Rinsing
The ADA wants consumers to know about the oral health benefits of adding ADA-accepted antimicrobial mouthrinses to their daily oral care.

The ADA continues to recommend that people brush twice a day with an ADA-Accepted fluoride toothpaste; clean between their teeth with an ADA-Accepted floss or ADA-Accepted interdental cleaner; eat a balanced diet and limit between meal snacks; and visit their dentist regularly for professional cleanings and oral examinations. In addition, the ADA now advises:

• Use of an ADA-Accepted antimicrobial mouthrinse or toothpaste helps prevent and reduce plaque and gingivitis
• Use of an ADA-Accepted fluoride mouthrinse helps prevent and reduce tooth decay

Adding LISTERINE^® Antiseptic to a routine of brushing and flossing has been shown to reduce up to 52 percent more plaque and up to 21 percent more gingivitis than brushing and flossing alone.

Twice-daily brushing and once-daily flossing, which the ADA continues to stress, can be effective at removing plaque from the tooth surfaces—but the teeth represent only about 25 percent of the surface area inside the mouth. An antimicrobial mouthrinse reaches the whole mouth, killing germs in "reservoirs" where plaque bacteria survive.

LISTERINE^® Antiseptic is the number one dentist-recommended brand of over-the-counter antimicrobial mouthrinse and the only nationally branded over-the-counter mouthrinse that has earned the ADA Seal of Acceptance.

Click here for more information to help counsel and educate your patients on the Brush, Floss, Rinse routine.

The World's Most Studied Mouthrinse
Backed by 100 years of safe use, LISTERINE^® Antiseptic has proven its efficacy in over 30 clinical studies.

Even for those who brush and floss, the addition of LISTERINE^® Antiseptic provides 52% greater plaque reduction and 21% greater gingivitis reduction (study based on a home-use test among subjects with mild-to-moderate gingivitis).¹

LISTERINE^® Carries the ADA Seal of Acceptance^*

LISTERINE^® is the only branded over-the-counter mouthrinse to receive the ADA Seal of Acceptance to fight plaque and gingivitis. LISTERINE^® has held this distinction since 1987. This study involved 237 adults with plaque and mild-to-moderate gingivitis, and adhered to strict ADA criteria. The ADA clinical guidelines for efficacy are rigorous:

The Council on Scientific Affairs, American Dental Association had this to say about LISTERINE^® Antiseptic: "The ADA Council on Scientific Affairs’ Acceptance of LISTERINE^® Antispetic is based on its finding that the product is effective in helping to prevent and reduce gingivitis and plaque above the gumline, when used as directed."

Design:	Randomized, parallel-group or crossover, placebo-controlled
Duration:	Minimum of 6 months
Methods:	Plaque and gingivitis scoring conducted at baseline, 6 months, and an intermediate period
Success Criteria:	Mean reduction in gingivitis no less than 20% compared with a placebo control

^*Advanced LISTERINE^® and Vanilla Mint LISTERINE^® Antiseptic Mouthrinse do not carry the ADA Seal.

REFERENCES

1. Sharma N, Charles CH, Lynch MC, et al. Adjunctive benefit of an essential oil-containing mouthrinse in reducing plaque and gingivitis in patients who brush and floss regularly: a six-month study. J Am Dent Assoc. 2004;135:496-504.