As part of my dental placement, I get a lot of opportunities to speak to patients. A lot of them are more willing to open up to the dental student than to their own dentist. This means that I learnt a lot about some dangerous dental trends that seem to be widespread. Here are just some of the crazy methods I heard about during my placement at a dentist in Runcorn.
Oil Pulling
One patient told me that she would sometimes brush her teeth using coconut oil and nothing else. The process of oil pulling isn’t necessarily going to harm your teeth, but it isn’t going to clean them properly, either. A lot of people are going crazy for coconut oil at the moment and many see it as a miracle product. This couldn’t be further from the case. Oil pulling involves melting a small amount of oil in your mouth and then swishing it between your teeth for a long time. If you swish with water for a long time, your teeth will be a little bit cleaner, but this doesn’t mean that swilling water is sufficient. There is also the risk of inhaling the oil, which can actually be deadly.
DIY Teeth Whitening
These can vary from brushing the teeth with activated charcoal to even rubbing strawberries all over the teeth. These trends often start on Pinterest and quickly gain traction thanks to faked before and after pictures. Rest assured, the best and safest way to get your teeth looking a few shades whiter without damaging your teeth is to visit the dentist. Even a trip to the dental hygienist for an airflow teeth cleaning can help to bring out your sparkly smile!
Avoiding the Dentist
While some people may be afraid of the dentist, others will put off visiting for lack of convenience or financial reasons. There’s always something that can be done, even if you’re worried about money or terrified of the dentist’s chair. Avoiding treatment can often be more expensive than keeping up to date with your dentist visits ever could be.