Earlier this week, while joking around with my fellow JagWire staff members, the topic of dental hygiene was somehow brought up in conversation. To my horror, I found out that a majority of my newsie peers, who until this point I had considered my intellectual equals, do not regularly floss their teeth. That is correct — breaking news from the Beauty Boss, the JagWire staff does not floss their teeth.

I voiced my shock, but found no allies in the room and I felt like that weird, floss-obsessed kid from the Suite Life of Zack and Cody. (Remember this episode?)

As someone who spent her childhood convinced by her parents that the tooth fairy only left money for impeccably clean teeth, I find this appalling. My parents were adamant about brushing and flossing twice a day, which now I realize was because they’d rather spend $1 on tooth fairy money than hundreds in dental fees.

Since I’m the minority on the topic, I presume there are few others with similarly concerned parents, which I find difficult to comprehend. How can parents, who are responsible for instilling little habits like flossing in their children, neglect to do so, but then spend thousands of dollars on braces? What is the point of having straight teeth if they’re plaque ridden and susceptible to falling out?

If these habits were taught to you, but you still consciously decide not to floss your teeth, grow up. As high school students on the verge of adulthood, it’s your job to take care of yourself. You wouldn’t skip showering, putting on deodorant or washing your face, so why would you skip something just as detrimental to not only your health, but also your physical appearance when ignored?

Not only does failing to floss cause health problems like gum disease and tooth decay, but the aesthetic repercussions are just as bad. I’ve never been one to judge the straightness of someone’s teeth, as braces are a pricy luxury not everyone can afford, but as far as having the appearance of healthy teeth goes, there are no excuses. After having this little talk with my peers, I’ve found myself paying significantly more attention to people’s teeth. Those who don’t floss have pale, inflamed and enlarged gums. There’s no hiding it – people other than your dentist can tell when you don’t floss.

The smiles of the hygienically lazy are not only unpleasing to the eye, but to the nose as well. The whole point of flossing is to remove the food that gets stuck between your teeth; if you skip it, the food stays in your teeth, rots and makes your breath smell like butt. Seriously, it’s really freaking gross.

Just take 60 seconds out of your morning routine and floss your teeth. People with good oral hygiene should not be the minority in a high school setting, especially not in the journalism room of said high school setting.