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Straighter Teeth by Mail

well.blogs.nytimes.com

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Re: Straighter Teeth by Mail

#51

Post by reubenbond »

Sir_Substance wrote: post #28
natosaichek wrote: post #8

The thing that bothers me is things like this: "the American Association of Orthodontists, a trade group, warned consumers against moving teeth without an initial exam and continuing supervision by an orthodontist. “Our concern is that patients who don’t see an orthodontist for regular checkups and/or for a complete diagnosis are more likely to be harmed,” said Dr. Rolf Behrents, a spokesman for the association" Ever…

The other reason people don't see these professionals is time, and under the Australian medicare system at least, there's a problematic time/cost tradeoff system. My last visit to a doctor went like something like this (it's been a while, excuse any slight irregularities): 1. Take a day off at your own expense to see the doctor 2. Submit a claim to medicare 3. Get called into medicare office because my medicare card…

Go to a doctor which bulk bills and you wont have to pay anything.

My experience: Call doctor at 9am to book appointment. Walk into medical center at 1pm. See doctor. Sign form on my way out to say I received treatment.

I didn't have to open my wallet once.

Edit: Also, why didn't you use sick leave?

Re: Straighter Teeth by Mail

#52

Post by robotcookies »

aaron695 wrote: post #33
robotcookies wrote: post #27

Would rather that society stop obsessing over having perfectly straight teeth. If they are otherwise healthy, why spend that money and go through the painful experience of straightening your teeth. It's entirely cultural (learned) to expect them to be perfect. Some cultures don't care (though in this globalized world, every culture is gradually expecting it).

Symmetry is not cultural but part of our genetics, some cultures care less because they have more important issues when looking at attractiveness like food and shelter security. Should burns victim who are healthy be able to get plastic surgery. Most people would think so. Genetic issues is no different to anything else that cause unusual looks. Where does it go from acceptable i.e. burns to the face, to it really sh…

I don't know if symmetry is really that ingrained in our dna as necessary for beauty. Most people part their hair to a side (rather than down the middle). There are few things cuter than a kid who smiles to reveal a missing tooth on one side. And what about dimples? A dimple on one side is nice but having them on both sides would look odd.

A lot of that is just what we are used to seeing. And as others have commented, people in places like the UK often see teeth that are too perfect as artificial looking.

Re: Straighter Teeth by Mail

#53

Post by greedo »

TheSpiceIsLife wrote: post #45
to3m wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Virtually everybody I know who's had braces on their teeth had them when they were 13, 14, 15 years old - presumably at that point your adult teeth are through but they (and you!) are still new enough to be flexible. So there's probably not, historically, been much demand. The parents don't want to spend extra on making the stuff look nice, so they just tell their children to put up with it. And their children don't…

Not sure about the flexible thing. Every month after seeing the orthodontist I spent two or three days laying in bed for hours crying, unable to eat. The pressure was awful, but mostly only when I had the time to focus on it.

Yep. My dentist keeps mentioning the need for braces for my children, despite one being age 8 at the time. I hated having my braces, and my teeth ended up shifting at a later age anyways. The pain was terrific, and the idea of putting my kids through that when they don't even have all their adult teeth seems like the worst of scams. Makes me wonder if my dentist gets a referral fee from the orthodontist.

Re: Straighter Teeth by Mail

#54

Post by mreiland »

robotcookies wrote: post #52
aaron695 wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Symmetry is not cultural but part of our genetics, some cultures care less because they have more important issues when looking at attractiveness like food and shelter security. Should burns victim who are healthy be able to get plastic surgery. Most people would think so. Genetic issues is no different to anything else that cause unusual looks. Where does it go from acceptable i.e. burns to the face, to it really sh…

I don't know if symmetry is really that ingrained in our dna as necessary for beauty. Most people part their hair to a side (rather than down the middle). There are few things cuter than a kid who smiles to reveal a missing tooth on one side. And what about dimples? A dimple on one side is nice but having them on both sides would look odd. A lot of that is just what we are used to seeing. And as others have commented…

There's a clear difference between sexual attraction and the cuteness of a kid.

Re: Straighter Teeth by Mail

#55

Post by robodale »

Before braces, I had to undergo two upper jaw surgeries (1st was a SARPE, 2nd was a Lefort I Osteotomy). Needed to widen my upper bite, then detach and pull the entire upper jaw (maxilla) forward 5mm. Only then could the braces align my teeth.

The surgeries were under my medical insurance, the braces were dental.

Search YouTube for SARPE...it's not for the squeamish.

Re: Straighter Teeth by Mail

#56

Post by robotcookies »

mreiland wrote: post #54
robotcookies wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't know if symmetry is really that ingrained in our dna as necessary for beauty. Most people part their hair to a side (rather than down the middle). There are few things cuter than a kid who smiles to reveal a missing tooth on one side. And what about dimples? A dimple on one side is nice but having them on both sides would look odd. A lot of that is just what we are used to seeing. And as others have commented…

There's a clear difference between sexual attraction and the cuteness of a kid.

What? We're not talking about sexual attraction. What do you think beauty means?

Re: Straighter Teeth by Mail

#57

Post by Sir_Substance »

reubenbond wrote: post #51
Sir_Substance wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The other reason people don't see these professionals is time, and under the Australian medicare system at least, there's a problematic time/cost tradeoff system. My last visit to a doctor went like something like this (it's been a while, excuse any slight irregularities): 1. Take a day off at your own expense to see the doctor 2. Submit a claim to medicare 3. Get called into medicare office because my medicare card…

Go to a doctor which bulk bills and you wont have to pay anything. My experience: Call doctor at 9am to book appointment. Walk into medical center at 1pm. See doctor. Sign form on my way out to say I received treatment. I didn't have to open my wallet once. Edit: Also, why didn't you use sick leave?

Contractor.

Re: Straighter Teeth by Mail

#58

Post by mreiland »

robotcookies wrote: post #56
mreiland wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's a clear difference between sexual attraction and the cuteness of a kid.

What? We're not talking about sexual attraction. What do you think beauty means?

In context of people it means sexual attraction.

Re: Straighter Teeth by Mail

#59

Post by sethkontny »

grantlmiller wrote: post #7

A few months ago, I was thinking about the opportunity to use 3d printing/imaging to drastically lower the cost of these types of devices. Ultimately the biggest hurdle is going to be getting an extremely accurate scan (not sure if you could do some combination of using dental x-rays, along with 3d imaging tech from mobile cameras to build the mouth model for each customer). Part of the solution could be in home try-…

sleepmedx

Re: Straighter Teeth by Mail

#60

Post by sethkontny »

robodale wrote: post #55

Before braces, I had to undergo two upper jaw surgeries (1st was a SARPE, 2nd was a Lefort I Osteotomy). Needed to widen my upper bite, then detach and pull the entire upper jaw (maxilla) forward 5mm. Only then could the braces align my teeth. The surgeries were under my medical insurance, the braces were dental. Search YouTube for SARPE...it's not for the squeamish.

sleepmedx
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