DIY Dental Hack Warning – TikTok Dental Trends to Avoid
There are a lot of DIY hacks on social media, however dental hacks are one thing to avoid. Recent home dental hacks on TikTok have many dentists concerned, especially ones showing DIY teeth filing and DIY melting beads for veneers.
TikTok tooth filing trends that make you cringe
DIY teeth filing is an extreme dental hack where young people are using a nail file or emery board to file down their teeth to try and straighten them. These TikTok tooth filing videos are dangerous and irreversible and can result in people filing away their protective layer of tooth enamel leaving an exposed nerve and hypersensitive tooth. If the tooth’s nerve is damaged and ground down too far this can lead to cavity vulnerability and tooth pain when eating or drinking cold food or drinks.
One important thing to remember is teeth do not grow back or repair themselves!
Once the tooth is filed down that is how it will stay, leaving it up to the dental professionals to repair. This can be a costly expense as you may require a veneer or crown or even a painful and costly root canal to fix the filed down tooth. If you don’t like the shape of your teeth, talk to your dental professional about your options. They will advise you on how best to achieve the result you want without harming your teeth.
While shaving your teeth is part of the restorative process for getting crowns or veneers, it is done by a dental professional while you are numb and being prepped. Dentists ensure they do not damage any nerves in the tooth by shaving down the enamel and making sure only the correct amount is removed, keeping a safe distance from the nerves of the tooth. They then shape the tooth exactly the right way to fit the veneer or crown onto it.
If you have tried this trend and are now in pain and regretting it, contact your dental practitioner ASAP and they can discuss with you how to help you repair the enamel damage and nerve pain. Veneers only cover the front of the tooth and need to be replaced every 15 years, while crowns cover the whole tooth and may last longer. In the long run, it will cost you a lot more than a dental consultation to discuss your teeth straightening options. Be aware if you have filed the tooth down too far you may also be looking at an even more costly root canal.
TikTok tooth filing trends and other DIY teeth hacks are costly, painful, destructive and dangerous. They are filmed by people who have no dental training and they cause irreversible tooth damage, which will require a professional dentist to fix.
Bizarre TikTok trend for making teeth out of craft beads
This last worrying TikTok dental DIY trend may seem a simple, cheap and effective hack to replace a missing tooth, however there are serious risks to consider. This trend on TikTok shows a dental hack where people use plastic melting beads to form a tooth-shaped plug in a gap between their teeth. It has many dental professionals concerned.
One popular product is Morph beads. These arts and crafts plastic beads are heated up and moulded into a tooth shape that is then pushed between the teeth, into the gap, to make a tooth. These melting beads are not hygienic and can result in food, bacteria, or plaque getting caught around the plastic tooth and nearby teeth. Other issues include inflammation of the gums and bone, which can lead to permanent gum recession and bone loss that is difficult to repair.
Even though filling a tooth yourself might seem simple and cheap, it is important to note that if there is a cavity and it is not cleaned from the decay and bacteria properly, and if the filling isn’t bonded to the tooth, the tooth will continue to decay even if the hole appears to be filled. Bacteria can actually leak under poorly bonded fillings and burrow through the tooth until it kills the nerve.
As well as being a gum hazard, using this DIY dental hack could pose a choking risk. These melting beads are not secure and if they come loose they could be inhaled or swallowed and require surgery to be removed.
Don’t risk it, speak to a professional
At the end of the day, if you have concerns about your oral health it’s important to seek advice from professionals rather than relying on social media channels like dangerous TikTok Dental Trends.
At Myers Street Dental, our professional and fully qualified team of dentists and oral health specialists are happy to assist you and no question is too small, we’ve heard it all before. Let us take of your dental health and reduce the risks of any further damage to your teeth and mouth.
I look forward to seeing you soon.
Article by Brenda Loh
Brenda has a heart of gold – and patients like you love her for it. Wanting to look after people stems way back to when she was a child and now it still shines through everything she does. Born in Malaysia, of Chinese heritage, and raised in the inner suburbs of Melbourne, Brenda has been a mainstay at the clinic since 2003 and has grown to love Geelong and the people around her.
Dr Brenda Loh on the dangers of using Morph beads as teeth
Recently on Pulse FM radio, Dr Brenda Loh at Myers Street Dental discussed the dangers of using Morph melting beads on your teeth and offered tips on how to avoid dental hacks and protect your teeth properly. She understands patients can get a little desperate when they need to fill a gap but she will always advise someone to talk to their dental professional about their concerns for safety reasons and to not use DIY melting beads as teeth.
Dr Brenda knows dental work can be expensive and she tries to educate people that the best way to avoid cheap and nasty DIY dental hacks is to talk to a dentist early on, while the problem is much smaller and less expensive to fix. Her advice is to find a good dentist with a good dental team who is able and willing to have a very thorough discussion about what the big picture is for you personally. It can be a confronting conversation but it allows you to plan for your financial commitments like a payment plan, a financial arrangement or a staged process, if possible.
After all, you want your teeth to last you a lifetime if possible and TikTok dental hacks are created by people with no dental training or qualifications and can cause irreversible tooth damage.
“I’ve seen lots of DIY remedies such as running to Bunnings to get superglue to repair dentures and fix crowns back in.
It’s really dangerous.
At the end of the day, talk to the professionals for your own safety.“
Dr Brenda Loh