Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

theatlantic.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

341–349 of 349 posts

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#341

Post by collyw »

WalterBright wrote: post #258
gnicholas wrote: post #240

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's the evidence for the rubber pointy tools?

They clean between the teeth and the gums where the gum overlaps the tooth. The evidence is your gums bleed the first time you do it, which is evidence of inflammation. A few days doing it, and the bleeding stops.

Sorry, but reading this came across as bullshit.

You are predicting that gums will bleed, so something that hasn't yet occurred is evidence of inflammation, so keep on doing it until your body adapts to it.

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#342

Post by diob »

jaywalk wrote: post #214
diob wrote: post #190

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I often wonder about this, because they made me remove mine due to "risk of infection". But afterwards I now get infections there if I get food stuck in the pocket left behind and can't get to a water pik soon enough.

Those pockets should have healed and closed up within a few days after surgery. It sounds like you had dry sockets that weren't properly dealt with.

Interesting, I did have to do two separate surgeries because my first got botched (I was a ten out of ten in terms of hardness according to them). Had some residual nerve damage...

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#343

Post by duck »

bombcar wrote: post #264
sedeki wrote: post #178

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A few years ago, a friend of my cousin became a licensed dentist here in Sweden. My cousin had to remove a tooth and his friend gave him, I assume, a lower price because they're friends... He removed a tooth alright, but the wrong one (on the wrong side). And apparently my cousin just assumed he worked on fixing something else, realising the mistake way too late. I asked my cousin if he considered suing but he didn't…

Reminds me of people getting "THIS LEG" tattooed on the leg to be removed, perhaps something similar with a stick on tooth decoration could be worth it.

It almost seems like tattooing "NOT THIS LEG" would be a safer move.

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#344

Post by jessaustin »

Tozen wrote: post #174
wing-_-nuts wrote: post #163

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are multiple studies showing how flouride in toothpaste and drinking water prevents cavities, and is non toxic. Where is your evidence to the contrary?

Flouride is toxic, period. The argument that you are likely trying to make, to oppose my statement, is how much of it can a person ingest before having negative health effects and is it really good for your teeth. It might be better to read about its history of usage, and that many countries do not allow flouride in their drinking water, and have a cavity rate that is equal or less than that of the U.S. https://www.p…

Some communities have a naturally-occurring fluoride level higher than the amount that is added in other communities for tooth health. (As described at your link, these places see some cases of fluorosis, but no one dies of cancer.) That is, only very small non-toxic amounts of fluoride are ever added. These amounts have radically improved the oral health of children in those communities. Poor children, who have little access to dentists in red states, would be especially harmed if cranks have their way and fluoridation ceases.

Let me guess, you also don't want iodine to be added to salt?

https://www.ada.org/resources/community-initiatives/fluoride...

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#345

Post by jessaustin »

dazc wrote: post #329
ghaff wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Especially if you get into procedures like crowns you are probably talking multiple visits. Mind you, they don't need to be next door. I kept the dentist I had when I was working 45 minutes away because I like them and it's not that much of an inconvenience to drive up there.

> Especially if you get into procedures like crowns you are probably talking multiple visits. Crowns and such can be done same day now, I have recently discovered.

Not cheaply. Milling machines are very expensive, and if your dentist bought one you're paying the note.

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#346

Post by IvanaSays »

noduerme wrote: post #173
burntalmonds wrote: post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Interesting. A similar thing happened to me. After a lifetime of zero cavities, the dentist I'd seen a few times for cleanings announces that my luck has run out -- I've got several cavities. I declined any work, but I was concerned. Shortly after that I ended up moving to a different state and it was about year before I got back in to a new dentist. I was dreading it since I figured he'd tell me I've got cavities. N…

Worse happened to me. I had no cavities until the age of 36. Then I apparently got two. New dentist. I went for a second opinion and a second new dentist confirmed it, but who knows. I got the fillings. Within six weeks, one of the teeth broke in half around the filling and the guy was trying to give me an emergency root canal. I ended up having to have it pulled. The other one broke in half a few months later, anoth…

There must be options in between suing him and firebombing his office. Seriously, think about folks coming in after you. Try to at least file a complaint, or give a bad review some place.

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#347

Post by IvanaSays »

m_ke wrote: post #102
dentalthrowaway wrote: post #68

Throwaway because I run a large dental software company. Dentistry is practiced as a business focused on maximizing revenue. Dentists are routinely coached to deploy sales tactics to increase their treatment acceptance beyond what is needed. If you walk into a dental office, you need to protect yourself from being abused. A second opinion unfortunately puts you in the same position, but now with a new dentist who wil…

A few years ago I went for an initial screening to 3 different dentists and was shocked by the gap in suggested treatments. One wanted to do major work on like 11-12 teeth, another just fillings on 2. It made me lose all trust in American dentistry and I ended up going to get work done at a dental school instead because I knew it would be supervised by professors who are not optimizing for their bottom line.

I have a very expensive surgery coming up on Wednesday next week. My original dentist didn't even see anything wrong with the tooth. New dentist saw a deep canal but did a deep cleaning (f-ing painful!), and told me to wait a few months to see if it heals. I insisted on seeing a periodontist sooner. Tooth must come out. Sought 2nd opinion - she is convicned two teeth must come out. Then changed her mind. Now telling me bone graft material in the US is superior and I'd better get it done here than originally planned in a few months in Europe (thus saving a few thousand dollars and postponing some suffering so I can go on a vacation). Getting a third opinion the night before the surgery and literally don't know what I am going to do with it. What even the F.

Re: Dentistry is less scientific and more gratuitous than people think (2019)

#349

Post by IvanaSays »

jodrellblank wrote: post #247
freiherr wrote: post #12

What I didn't hear often enough when listening about teeth health is how important is diet and lifestyle for the teeh health. While there was talk about brushing and regular dentist visits, the diet factor was mentioned briefly and half-heartedly that you shouldn't eat sugar. Which nobody listened to anyway (especially as a kid). How much more is there to it is well explained in Weston A. Price - Nutrition and Physic…

Weston Price (Dentist) travelled the world looking at indigenous people eating their traditional diet, and found they had very little tooth decay. Tooth decay starts up with the modern refined flour, refined sugar, diets. As well he found that they have very round wide mouths and not much teeth overcrowding that is so common today, and wide noses and nostrils, easy breathing through the nose. He put it down to nutrie…

Recommend reading "Breath" by James Nestor! Amongst other things, purees for babies...so many parents give their babies sugary pouches..Uh!
Post reply on HN