You may be able to hide the fact that you're not flossing consistently from your dentist for a little while, but eventually she'll be able to tell.
The more important question is, why aren't you flossing?
If you begin flossing regularly beginning about a week before your upcoming appointment, your dentist or hygienist may not notice that you're not actually flossing regularly.
In addition, just being young, healthy, and having a nutritious diet (all of which affect your gum health) will also decrease the outward signs poor oral hygiene for a little while.
But this won't last forever!
It's just like if you stop consistently exercising and eating a healthy diet; the negative effects won't be outwardly obvious at first. You would continue to look, and maybe even feel, just about the same as before for some time. But then, as you probably know, these lifestyle changes will catch up with you. The same goes for not flossing.
The foundation of good oral health is prevention and maintenance — not treatment. Making good oral hygiene a part of your daily routine will help to prevent problems from developing in the first place.
What will happen if I don't floss enough?
When you don't floss regularly, food debris stays stuck between your teeth for longer periods of time. This, in turn, allows bacteria to colonize in those spaces and eventually leads to tooth decay.
Once this starts to happen, your dentist will definitely be able to tell that you haven't been flossing.
In the end, we’ll leave you with these questions: Why are you trying to fool your dentist into thinking you’re flossing regularly when you’re not? What's the point? Why not just floss regularly instead? It only takes a few minutes each day, and the benefits are enormous!