Brush your teeth...or die
- Thread starter jbhtexas
- Start date
- Mar 27, 2006
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I also know a person in our office who apparently doesn't brush their teeth, go to the dentist or have their kids do either. Drivees me insane, especially when our insurance covers most of it.
My BIL is a dentist and he provides FREE dental care to his extended family. His wife's brother drinks Mt. Dew all of the time and never brushes. BIL has fixed his teeth repeatedly but has told him if he doesn't start taking care of them at least a little bit he is going to cut him off. As someone who started off with some congenital dental issues I really value my teeth. We only get one second set of teeth and we need to make them last for decades - there are no re-dos.
It is interesting when looking at our teeth that it is clear that our bodies were only designed for a limited lifespan ~ 30 years or so. If we were designed for longer lifespans we would probably have a mechanism for regular tooth replacement throughout our lives. Look at pachyderms. They wear out their teeth grinding up grasses. They have teeth through a lifespan similar to our modern lifespans by having new teeth grow in the back of their mouths as worn out teeth work their way forward and eventually are lost.
I don't get the fear of a root canal. The pain before my procedure was brutal. The root canal relieved it.
FAFO
But thanks for screwing up your own teeth so it cost a lot to fix and then make insurance go up to cover stupid people.
But thanks for screwing up your own teeth so it cost a lot to fix and then make insurance go up to cover stupid people.
Makes you wonder how people got by before dentists and antiseptics.
Diet back then had very little sugar in it. People weren't eating lots of sugar and zero pop, candy, Fruit Loops, processed foods....
Have you ever seen the dental tools they used to pull teeth, antiseptic was whiskey
Snuffed out before he could finish his sentence. Dental assassins are ruthless.
RIP dafarmer
It would probably help more people be comfortable going to the dentist if the technicians there generally had tolerable bedside manners. I get it, you look at teeth and peoples generally suspect oral hygiene daily so you're cold to it and it is just a task for you. But being an every 6 months visit guy I usually try to get appointments in the morning so they aren't carrying all that job negativity into my interaction. Never had a cavity in my life and have healthy gums and take care of myself (had braces growing up so my parents would be displeased if I wasted "their investment") however just because you as a dental tech see things every day doesn't mean you can be a curt.
Yeah, even pre-agricultural revolution, hunter/gatherers had dental probs if they ate carbs. Like these folks eating lots of acorns 15,000 years ago..
I went 12 years without a dentist visit. Basically from the age of 18 to 30. Went in, and they found two cavities that needed filled, everything else was fine. I do brush regularly and floss a couple times a week though. I've been going every 6 months since for the last few years.
Damn. That seems like a bad way to go out.
I have good dental hygiene practices that I follow and so does my wife. I actually probably put more work into my teeth than she does. But she's never had a cavity in her life and I've probably had more than a dozen. Genetics plays a role.
That said, it is one of the simpler, routine things you can do. I don't know anybody but little kids who need to be told to take care of it.
I have good dental hygiene practices that I follow and so does my wife. I actually probably put more work into my teeth than she does. But she's never had a cavity in her life and I've probably had more than a dozen. Genetics plays a role.
That said, it is one of the simpler, routine things you can do. I don't know anybody but little kids who need to be told to take care of it.
I was about 15 years with no checkups (from about 20-35). Nothing but a little extra cleaning. Ive only ever had preventative fillings and my wisdom teeth taken out in high school. Maybe lucky I guess. I even dipped for all of those 15 years (now switched to the nicotine pouches). I’ve gone a couple times over the last couple years after the big gap. I am religious about brushing though. I don't think there has been a day in the last 20 years I haven't brushed at least twice.
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I worked with a guy right after college who had spent a few years in the slammer. He said that a lot of people are crazy about brushing their teeth in the big house. Many of the dentists that end up coming in to work on inmate's teeth will just yank the tooth if you have a problem so they are deathly afraid of having a cavity. I guess I can't blame the dentists too much, though. I'm not sure I would want to stick my fingers in the mouths of guys who have nothing to lose and could bite your fingers with no repercussions. He said it wasn't uncommon for an inmate to be brushing their teeth 5 or 6 times a day. Gotta be careful about too much and too vigorous brushing too, though. You can damage your gums and make it easier for gum disease to take hold, or so I have been told.
