HEALTH CARE : Inventor Hopes Public Will Sink Teeth Into Handy Floss

Those of you afraid to open your mouth for fear of revealing what is left of your lunch between your teeth, fear no more.

Se Ki Won says he’s got a new product that will make smiling a little safer.

The 51-year-old, Korean-born handyman has invented what he calls the Handy Floss, a dental floss holder that can slip into a shirt pocket or purse and be used with a quick flip of the wrist.

“It’s very good,” Won says enthusiastically. “I think everybody needs this.”

Though the Handy Floss is not the first dental floss holder to be sold, Won took the concept a step further by adding a roll of the thin, waxy thread to the handle--about 22 yards’ worth.

The result is a 2 1/2-inch-long, fork-shaped device that holds three patents, which Won acquired last year. He said he figures his invention should sell at about $1.50 in retail stores.

Won’s next challenge is to make sales to the public. Though he has produced about 100,000 units, virtually all of them are sitting unsold in his Westminster garage.

He is searching for investors and a medical products distributor to take the Handy Floss to the marketplace.

“I need some help,” he said. “This could be a big business.”