To be fed up with getting told off every time I go to the dentist?

[ElderAve]

I'm 50 this year and I don't have any fillings. There's nothing wrong with my teeth. I eat a balanced diet hardly any sweets and no fizzy drinks (main because I've never liked them). I'm also probably just a bit lucky with my teeth.

I brush regularly but find flossing really uncomfortable so rarely do it. I see the hygienist three times a year to get rid of any build up.

Every time I go to the dentist or the hygienist, I get another lecture about brushing and flossing. I know technically it's just advice but the tone is definitely "telling off".

Really, I'm a 50yo adult who's teeth are in remarkably good condition, I can't be getting it that badly wrong. And if I do have any failings, I pay these people handsomely to deal with it!

Actually, by this stage in life, I'm not at all convinced such regular visits are necessary, but obviously no dentist is going to tell me that.

Sorry not taking seriously 👍

@Mycatismadeofstringcheese

I got my water flosser from Amazon think it was about £10. I just checked and can't see a brand name on it.
I wouldn't be without one now, mines a pump action one, so now charging or batteries. The amount of debris that is blown out after having already brushed for 2 minutes is amazing! And has really highlighted to me the benefit of flossing.

I'm currently wearing Invisalign braces so I'm having to be extra vigilant with this stuff.

Another vote for the waterpik/water flosser. So much easier and quicker than traditional flossing and works better too.

Teeth do NOT GROW BACK, and the EARLIEST wisdom teeth erupt is 18.

Water oils/flossers are not better at removing plaque band debris.

deandra that's incorrect. My wisdom teeth came through from 15 and were fully through by 18. It hurt like a motherfucker. I totally understand why babies cry due to teething!

*piks

It IS TRUE. I'm an oral surgeon/orthodontist.

deandra so how come mine were through by 18 then? Granted my dentist it was unusual, but clearly it is possible.

I’ve been given repeated lectures by the hygienist on tooth enamel erosion. Ok point taken, but it happened years ago and there is nothing I can do about it now other than avoid making it worse. I wonder if she simply forgot she already gave me that lecture, as she’s seeing patients all day everyday, whereas I was only visiting twice a year? The cleaning was more painful too than the check up. There was very little difference before and after especially after I got some crowns which do not stain easily. She was always on about tooth whitening - as I understand it, not a good idea with my back of mouth amalgam fillings which I’ve had for decades.

I brush twice daily, with an additional small brush around the crowns, and floss morning and night also. I use those Y shaped flossers for back teeth at night - they work on all the teeth, not just wisdom/molars - as I’m too tired at bedtime to floss properly between my fingers. Even so I get the occasional bleed which seems to be in times of stress like after moving house. But they never mention stress as a cause of bleeding so I don’t know.

Anyway since retiring I can’t afford £40 a month dental plan and haven’t been for a couple of years. It has been bliss. The dentist was not too bad - he even said my gums are healthy, but the thought of a hygienist really puts me off going. Dental hygienists were not a thing in my youth.

Ha, I'm in the same position, no fillings yet a lecture every time (I travel a lot for work, so it is not always easy to use the electric toothbrush)

I am sure this is a new trend in the last 5-8 years or so? My dentist used to be fairly chilled about these things.

Dental hygienists were not a thing in my youth

I wish they had been. Maybe I would have more teeth in my head than I have now if that had been the case

They would have been formed and waiting in jaw bone to erupt around 18. Obviously I couldn't possibly comment on any individual case, however the "norm" is between 17/18-25 years old.....and teeth do not grow back.

@deandra

The EARLIEST wisdom teeth will erupt is 18!

@pumpandthump

deandra my wisdom teeth came through at 15.

Yeah my niece started getting her wisdom teeth come through at 14. All four had come through by 18. My nephew (her brother) had his come in at 15, and he had all four by 19.

My DD had 2 wisdom teeth start to come through at 16.

So if you are an orthodontist/oral surgeon @deandra (like you CLAIM you are,) then you need to go and retrain. You seem insistent that the EARLIEST age that wisdom teeth erupt/start coming through, is 18. But you are wrong.

Living proof (MORE of it,) that some experts claiming to be all-knowing-oracles, are not as clever and knowledgeable as they claim they are.

And by the way deandra, surely everyone know 'second teeth' do not grow back! Who said they think they grow back???!

A basic electric toothbrush on sale has been a good investment and I now go every six months. (It paid for itself in a year)

Last time I had an ear bashing from a hygienist I pointed out that she would be redundant if everybody brushed their teeth perfectly. It helped; she laughed and said 'Good point'.

I don't need to retrain. We have evolved since stone age which is when we needed wisdom teeth because of out diets...and we had wider jaw bones. A large proportion of people today do don't even have wisdom teeth. Stick that in your pipe........

I was replying to the post where it was said the person lost there WISDOM tooth aged ELEVEN only for it to regrow aged 18....I'm not referring to deciduous teeth (baby teeth) and permanent dentition (adult).

*their

@ElderAve I could have written this!!
I'm 51, my teeth are in good condition ,haven't had any problems with them not even a filling, for years.
I hate flossing- it actually makes me feel sick, I gag and I just hate it. I brush well and use corsodyl to keep bacteria at bay.
But I get told off every time I go to the dentist! About how I should be flossing every day, brushing like this, brushing like that, using an electric toothbrush etc etc etc......but I never need anything doing except a bit of a clean!
I'm 51 for Gods sake- so I'm not doing too bad to still have all my own teeth!!

@deandra

I think you need a refresher course, because you are clearly wrong.

Admitting it would be the first step.

Booking a refresher course on the skills you claim to have would be the second step.

The EARLIEST wisdom teeth will erupt is 18!

@deandra I find it difficult to believe a professional would state this as a fact - it's simply not true.

.... because it IS a FACT. Obviously, as with everything....there are anomalies.

I was taught average eruption date of third molars is age 16-25, they vary greatly and we all know patients who have early or late dental development. They can also be missing altogether.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4979926/

@OrangeShark, I was hoping you would be able to link a viable study or two showing that flossing has proven benefits and that anyone can do it optimally.

I wasn't trying to imply you don't know what you are talking about.

It seems to me that when government-sponsored advice is suddenly removed from circulation there must be some good reason and I thought maybe you would have information that could reassure people.

You got right up to the brink of expressing empathy but then dropped the ball in your post where you stated your belief that patients have misunderstood body language or some other aspect of the haranguings they have experienced.

Fwiw, teachers get a very hard time here.