San Francisco, Marin, and Oakland, CA
Most of us would never dream of going that long without brushing our teeth, but one British man, Jay, did just that! His painstaking honesty emerged from a viral video on YouTube called Embarrassing Bodies on Only Human. He had tartar buildup and such rampant decay that you could only begin to imagine how painful his teeth must have been. So, what does happen to your teeth if you do not brush them for 20 years, and why would someone neglect his or her oral health to that degree?
Your San Francisco dentists at Glen Park Dental are going to discuss the answers to these questions for you today. While most of us would never neglect our teeth for that long, even skipping just one night here and there could end up causing you oral health concerns in the long-run.
Jay’s video is certainly an extreme case of someone neglecting their oral health. Glen Park Dental stands behind the American Dental Association’s recommendation that we should all brush our teeth twice a day and floss daily. Because, quite frankly, prevention is key when it comes to preserving our oral health. In Jay’s circumstance, he ended up with costly repairs and dealt with a great deal of pain as a result of not caring for his teeth for two decades. Isn’t it much cheaper to brush and floss your teeth on the front end, rather than waiting until they need extensive and costly repairs later on? As Benjamin Franklin once said, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” This adage still rings true today, even with our oral health.
In watching Jay’s video, we learned he was only 21 years old, and that his parents simply never taught him the importance of taking care of his teeth, let alone encouraged him to visit the dentist, ever. At Glen Park Dental, we encourage all patients as young as one year of age to visit the dentist for checkups and cleanings at least twice per year. Good oral hygiene and regular dental visits are not all it takes to maintain a healthy mouth, our diet matters, too. And in Jay’s case, it meant giving up the soft drinks.
Jay was not only in pain from not visiting the dentist, but he was afraid to go because he was embarrassed. He also felt that the condition of his teeth was stunting his professional growth. Finally, Jay decided it was time to change, and time to get his oral health on track for the first time in his life. He sought out a dentist that could help him, and he underwent an extreme smile makeover, including having some teeth extracted and replaced with implants because the teeth were too far gone to repair.
Luckily, Jay had healthy gums and jawbone, which is required to be a candidate for dental implants. However, not all patients are that lucky. Sometimes, poor oral health may get so bad that it causes infection in the jawbone, which is not ideal for restoring a smile with dental implants.
While the video does not mention anything about Jay’s overall health, we at Glen Park Dental are firm believers that the health of our mouths is connected to the health of our bodies. Thankfully, Jay turned the corner before it was too late. Allowing his mouth to continue in the shape that it was in could have meant detriment for his health including an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke, diabetes, and more.
Kick the bad habits
Jay, just like anyone wanting to start on the road to good oral health, has to maintain his new smile by practicing good oral hygiene while at home and following through with dental visits twice per year. Otherwise, he could risk relapsing, and his teeth could end up back like they were or worse. At Glen Park Dental, we believe that everyone should strive to maintain good oral hygiene practices for life. If you have children, encourage your children to make oral hygiene a priority, and do so yourself as well. While brushing and flossing your teeth may seem like mundane activities, don’t be like Jay and neglect your teeth for life!
Smile Makeover in San Francisco
If you would like to learn more about how to get your oral health on track or to get a smile makeover to reverse years of neglect, please contact Glen Park Dental by calling (415) 585-1500.
Glen Park Dental provides comprehensive, compassionate, quality oral health care for patients in the areas of Marin, Oakland, and San Francisco, California.
