to wonder why people don't worry about black stubby teeth?

[khaliwali]

I have just watched an episode of Jeremy Kyle for the first time in years. I am not trying to make fun of, or judge people who may be on low income/benefits and those who may have a drink problem, please don't think I am. Quite rightly, as far as I know, in the UK dental treatment is still free to people who can't afford to pay. On this particular show, all of the people under 40 had either teeth missing or blackened rotten front teeth. I wonder why more isn't done to promote dental health, surely gum disease and all of it's related diseases are expensive for the NHS to treat and in 2011, completely unnecessary.
As I said, I am not slating the people on this show although I do think that they are being exploited but that it another story.

Have you tried to get proper dental care for free on the NHS?

yabu, the waiting list for a dentist in my area is 5 years

A lot of people can't get on the books of NHS dentists

I think there's a historical fear of dentists in this country, passed down from generation to generation.

Loads is done via education to promote dental health, however you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him brush twice daily with a fluoride toothpaste.

lol at free dental care

the only ones who do it on the cheap tend to be butchers

We had to wait a year to get treated by an NHS dentist when we moved.

I had a couple of black stubby (back) teeth till a couple of years ago. The reason being I was terrified, absolutely terrified. Eventually I saw a dentist who knocked me out completely and did everything that needed doing but I seriously would rather have had false teeth than gone to a dentist.

That's beside the cost issue. Mine cost £1500, no available NHS dentists in the area.

A lot of middle class, educated people with good access to private and NHS healthcare don't take care of their teeth - so it is even more unlikely that poor, uneducated people with chaotic lifestyles and poor access to services are going to.

I can't have an NHS dentist because I can afford to pay. If I was on Jobseekers and Housing Benefit I would expect at least subsidised care.and gets priority be

OP of COURSE you can get NHS treatment whatever your income as long as you can find a dentist with free space on their list!

I think it either comes down to:

They just don't care
They can't get an NHS dentist
Fear

I fall into the fear bracket. I have horrible teeth. I can't even explain the fear. I had DD without an epidural so I know no dental treatment could hurt as much. BUT I've finally manned up and registered me and DD with a NHS dentist and only have to wait 4 weeks for our first appt. I have such a fear that even my 3yo DD has never been to a dentist as I feel sick just being in one! And now I'm panicking that my dentist will be a butcher, because why else would he have space for NHS patients?!? lol

The odd thing is that dentist work DOESN'T hurt apart from the minute prick of the injection.

my mother sometimes rings through to me in the middle of the night screaming:

"DON'T LET YOUR CHILDREN GET ENGLISH TEETH."

Her dentist, in contrast, flies a private plane (noooo kidding, small tho). I have never gotten away from his office with a bill of less than a grand US. We don't have insurance there but not all people do and you can see why people would stay away, being subjected to all of their "preventive medicine."

My dd (17) is a dental phobe. She has a very small mouth and can't fit the Xray film in her mouth. Last time we went she nearly punched the dentist. Can't get her there now. And I took her religiously every six months. Fear she will be black stubby tooth!

We pay privately and there is a waiting list for appointments. Just booked one today for 4 august (urgent)

all dental practices here are accepting NHS - what you can get done on NHS is a different matter.
But those teeth on JK - lifetime of poor diet (seen infants at local school with brown milk teeth - poor souls), fags, booze and perhaps a little bit of drug abuse from time to time.
there was an urban myth that if you put a tooth in a glass of cola overnight it would dissolve - cola certainly strips the tooth enamel.
and all the really rough ones on JK come from my neck of the woods.
where there are dentists a plenty.

I'm lucky in that we live in an area now with loads of great NHS dentists but DH and I have both spend the best part of 5 years getting our teeth sorted out after crap dentistry growing up in a different area. DH's teeth in particular were ruined by NHS dentistry as a child, he'll have life long problems with them and I should imagine it'll cost us a lot of money.

If you want to have decent teeth in this country you need to have the money to pay for a decent dentist.

I have an NHS dentist and pay for the treatment. If you live in a deprived area, it's much easier to get an NHS dentist. Dentists with spaces aren't bad ones, they are probably just in areas where people are afraid of them.
Special Fried Rice - I hope the appointment goes well, if you're very good they might even give you a sticker!

I'm counting on the black stubby teeth to draw they eye away from my moustache, thread veins and bloodshot lazy eye. :)

There are a couple of mums at my boys school with front teeth missing or brown teeth.

All the dentists round here are accepting NHS patients.

I think it is fear TBH which is a real shame because dentists nowadays are very aware of phobias and some even specialise in working with patients with severe phobias.

Thanks Harecare I better get a sticker, If I don't I'll just steal DD's! :P

My parents in law have no teeth at all in the front top or back. Before they fell out they were brown/black colour. They didn't / don't brush their teeth, ever, and the smoke 80 a day. Apparently smoking can blacken your teeth.

I plucked up the courage and asked my mother in law about why she didn't go to the dentist/brush her teeth etc. She said that nobody in her family brushed their teeth growing up, it wasn't seen as basic hygine and that is how she has led her life now. She said that she didn't want the faff of going to the dentist.

However, I know she is aware and knows they look bad because for years she refuses to open her mouth and smile in a photo. She always keeps her mouth shut.

I think a lot of people simply don't care about their teeth.
We have no problem with NHS dentists round here - plenty of vacancies - so availability is no excuse.
And given the relationship of tattoos to missing teeth around here I can't believe that fear of pain is an issue either.
I just think dental care is filed away with obesity and smoking as something to be ignored.

Oh, dentists do hurt! My filling hurt a lot, the drilling was so painful ,and then the extraction of said tooth was worse.