When it comes to purchasing travel gear dental floss certainly isn’t the most exciting thing on the list. I get it. But good oral hygiene is important, and after decades of carrying mini, travel size packs of dental floss wherever I went, Burst Expanding Floss is now a regular in my toiletry bag.
A few years back I starting making a conscious effort to remove single-use plastic from my day-to-day life. So not to be overwhelmed, I began with bathroom toiletries, testing a variety of products including everything from shampoo and conditioner bars to toothpaste tablets to eco-friendly dental floss.
I stumbled with a couple dental floss options that were good for the planet, but per my dentist, not good at keeping my teeth healthy. I had pretty much given up on finding an eco-friendly option when my dental hygienist discovered and recommended Burst Expanding Floss.
Different from other floss, Burst is black. Made using 300-plus fibers woven together to clean debris from between your teeth, the floss reportedly expands when it comes in contact with saliva. Soft and shred resistant, it doesn’t irritate my gums and the unusual black color makes it very clear what’s being removed from in between my teeth.
The floss is said to be comprised of polyester, so it’s not biodegradable or compostable. Spend time combing through the website’s FAQ section and you’ll learn Burst Expanding Floss uses microcrystalline wax, is vegan, and contains no per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, better known as PFAS.
Unlike traditional dental floss, Burst utilizes a refillable floss container made from recycled plastic. When your floss runs out, you simply pop in a replacement bobbin. The plastic case is tiny, taking up about the same amount of space in my toiletry bag as the travel size packs I once depended on.
Burst Expanding Floss comes in two flavors: Mint Eucalyptus and Juniper Berry. Cost is $5.99 for Expanding Floss with a dispenser and $5 for Replacement Floss bobbins on the Burst Expanding Floss website.