{"id":80,"date":"2025-06-06T19:51:33","date_gmt":"2025-06-06T19:51:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/?p=80"},"modified":"2026-02-17T15:52:51","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T15:52:51","slug":"emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/","title":{"rendered":"Emergency Evasion: Safely Removing What\u2019s Trapped in Your Teeth"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Have you ever been munching on a handful of popcorn only to realize a thin kernel just slid right between your teeth? Not only can this be incredibly frustrating and uncomfortable, but many people have also accidentally hurt their teeth and gums trying to remove stuck objects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have something caught in your grin, continue reading to learn 4 ways you can try to safely dislodge and avoid a potential emergency<\/a>!<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Tip #1: Rinse Your Mouth<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It makes sense to try the simplest solution first, so if you haven\u2019t already tried rinsing your mouth out to remove whatever is trapped there, you should! Swishing water around can naturally loosen the stuck food or other object.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re feeling at all uncomfortable or notice any swelling, you can mix about \u00bd teaspoon of salt into a cup of warm water to naturally disinfect your teeth and gums and reduce any associated throbbing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tip #2: Try Pushing With Your Tongue<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019re not alone if your first instinct is to poke at your teeth or gums with your fingernail to try to loosen things jammed there. However, you might introduce additional bacteria to your mouth that can cause disease or decay, or you could injure your enamel or connective tissues if you\u2019re not careful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you want to try to push the stuck item out, why not use your tongue? Plenty of people have tried this method successfully, but be careful not to overdo it. If you overwork this dexterous muscle, it can trigger painful inflammation in your TMJ (temporomandibular joints) that anchor your jawbone to your skull.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tip #3: Floss Carefully<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You can also try using standard string floss or an oral irrigator to carefully remove trapped debris from between your teeth and below your connective tissues. However, you run the risk of pushing it deeper if you aren\u2019t careful, so do your best not to use too much force. A lighter touch can effectively extract whatever has become stuck without causing further irritation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tip #4: Contact Your Dentist<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019ve tried all of these methods and nothing has worked, it\u2019s time to contact your dentist! You might not think of something stuck in your smile as an emergency, but it\u2019s better to be seen sooner rather than later. Whatever is lodged in your grin could attract germs that contribute to oral issues or cause an injury if you wait too long to be seen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your dental team has the experience and advanced equipment required to safely remove anything that\u2019s been trapped in your teeth without hurting them!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About the Author<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Caroline Irons<\/a> earned her dental doctorate at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. Since finishing school, she has been very active in Spear and TeamACT Education Study Clubs, focusing on implant placement and restoration. Dr. Irons is also certified to provide Invisalign and is proud to be a member of Women in Dentistry. If you and your family are looking for preventive dental care, we can help! Schedule your appointment online<\/a> or call (208) 322-5655<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Have you ever been munching on a handful of popcorn only to realize a thin kernel just slid right between your teeth? Not only can this be incredibly frustrating and uncomfortable, but many people have also accidentally hurt their teeth and gums trying to remove stuck objects. If you have something caught in your grin, continue reading to learn 4 ways you can try to safely dislodge and avoid a potential emergency! (Read More)<\/a>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":81,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-80","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nEmergency Evasion: Safely Removing What\u2019s Trapped in Your Teeth | Southwest Dental Arts Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Continue reading to learn 4 helpful tip that can help you remove a stuck object from your smile while avoiding a potential emergency!\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Emergency Evasion: Safely Removing What\u2019s Trapped in Your Teeth | Southwest Dental Arts Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Continue reading to learn 4 helpful tip that can help you remove a stuck object from your smile while avoiding a potential emergency!\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Southwest Dental Arts Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-06-06T19:51:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-02-17T15:52:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/AdobeStock_581662277-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1969\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"southwestdent\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"southwestdent\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/06\\\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/06\\\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"southwestdent\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/c29e4b2c34e43dbacea5ce87f78dfde5\"},\"headline\":\"Emergency Evasion: Safely Removing What\u2019s Trapped in Your Teeth\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-06T19:51:33+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-17T15:52:51+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/06\\\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":518,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/06\\\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/08\\\/AdobeStock_581662277-scaled.jpg\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/06\\\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/06\\\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\\\/\",\"name\":\"Emergency Evasion: Safely Removing What\u2019s Trapped in Your Teeth | Southwest Dental Arts Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/06\\\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/06\\\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/08\\\/AdobeStock_581662277-scaled.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-06T19:51:33+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-17T15:52:51+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/c29e4b2c34e43dbacea5ce87f78dfde5\"},\"description\":\"Continue reading to learn 4 helpful tip that can help you remove a stuck object from your smile while avoiding a potential emergency!\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/06\\\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/06\\\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/06\\\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/08\\\/AdobeStock_581662277-scaled.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/08\\\/AdobeStock_581662277-scaled.jpg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1969,\"caption\":\"Nose-to-chin closeup of someone flossing their upper teeth.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/06\\\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Emergency Evasion: Safely Removing What\u2019s Trapped in Your Teeth\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/\",\"name\":\"Southwest Dental Arts Blog\",\"description\":\"\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/c29e4b2c34e43dbacea5ce87f78dfde5\",\"name\":\"southwestdent\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/880dfda1be67a52d03d64a1bfa9a65b3159b902fbe6a5cb8ad32c924fc77618f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/880dfda1be67a52d03d64a1bfa9a65b3159b902fbe6a5cb8ad32c924fc77618f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/880dfda1be67a52d03d64a1bfa9a65b3159b902fbe6a5cb8ad32c924fc77618f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"southwestdent\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\\\/blog\\\/author\\\/southwestdent\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Emergency Evasion: Safely Removing What\u2019s Trapped in Your Teeth | Southwest Dental Arts Blog","description":"Continue reading to learn 4 helpful tip that can help you remove a stuck object from your smile while avoiding a potential emergency!","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Emergency Evasion: Safely Removing What\u2019s Trapped in Your Teeth | Southwest Dental Arts Blog","og_description":"Continue reading to learn 4 helpful tip that can help you remove a stuck object from your smile while avoiding a potential emergency!","og_url":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/","og_site_name":"Southwest Dental Arts Blog","article_published_time":"2025-06-06T19:51:33+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-02-17T15:52:51+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2560,"height":1969,"url":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/AdobeStock_581662277-scaled.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"southwestdent","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"southwestdent","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/"},"author":{"name":"southwestdent","@id":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/c29e4b2c34e43dbacea5ce87f78dfde5"},"headline":"Emergency Evasion: Safely Removing What\u2019s Trapped in Your Teeth","datePublished":"2025-06-06T19:51:33+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-17T15:52:51+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/"},"wordCount":518,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/AdobeStock_581662277-scaled.jpg","inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/","url":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/","name":"Emergency Evasion: Safely Removing What\u2019s Trapped in Your Teeth | Southwest Dental Arts Blog","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/AdobeStock_581662277-scaled.jpg","datePublished":"2025-06-06T19:51:33+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-17T15:52:51+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/c29e4b2c34e43dbacea5ce87f78dfde5"},"description":"Continue reading to learn 4 helpful tip that can help you remove a stuck object from your smile while avoiding a potential emergency!","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/AdobeStock_581662277-scaled.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/AdobeStock_581662277-scaled.jpg","width":2560,"height":1969,"caption":"Nose-to-chin closeup of someone flossing their upper teeth."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/06\/emergency-evasion-safely-removing-whats-trapped-in-your-teeth\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Emergency Evasion: Safely Removing What\u2019s Trapped in Your Teeth"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/","name":"Southwest Dental Arts Blog","description":"","inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/c29e4b2c34e43dbacea5ce87f78dfde5","name":"southwestdent","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/880dfda1be67a52d03d64a1bfa9a65b3159b902fbe6a5cb8ad32c924fc77618f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/880dfda1be67a52d03d64a1bfa9a65b3159b902fbe6a5cb8ad32c924fc77618f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/880dfda1be67a52d03d64a1bfa9a65b3159b902fbe6a5cb8ad32c924fc77618f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"southwestdent"},"url":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/author\/southwestdent\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=80"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":148,"href":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80\/revisions\/148"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/81"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=80"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=80"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.southwestdentalboise.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=80"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}