And it's back with a vengeance! The tooth that previously suffered a root canal is at it again, sending out nauseating waves of pain. I still need to make an appointment, but I'm afraid of the diagnosis. It may be "goodbye and so long" to my tooth. What a joke.
For the record, I've brushed my teeth twice a day, every day, flossed 3 times a week, and sloshed two cups of mouth wash every day ever since my last appointment a little over a year ago. I suppose that is part of the problem -- I wait too long to go in for a cleaning, which should be scheduled twice a year. But I must have some pretty lame genes as well.
I wish I had dental insurance. Hopefully this won't eat up all my savings.
6 comments:
Call me crazy, but I subscribe to the George Carlin theory of microbiology on this one: those who care most prosper least. In other words, the more germ-conscientious a person is, the more likely they are to get very sick from the common flu, to get cavities, to get food poisoning, etc. It's the person who never brushes, who eats mayonnaise that's sat out for 6 hours, and who bites his fingernails 10 seconds after touching public doorknobs coated with viruses who seems to be healthiest.
Is it cart-before-the-horse logic? Sure, maybe. I admit it's possible that the reason life looks like this is because the jackasses who have weaker immune systems get sick and die off whereas the jackasses with stronger immune systems are allowed to get away with their jackass lifestyle -- my jackass lifestyle -- but I dunno.
All I'll say is, I brush once every day except on weekends where (if I forget) I may only do it once, I floss never, I visit the dentist once every 10 years, and I've only ever had one cavity. When? Ironically, this last summer -- which was 8 months AFTER I had given up my sugar-flooded diet of Pepsi-Cola and opted for sugar-free water instead! Coincidence? You decide.
For those crunching the numbers, I've only ever been to the dentist three times: 2007, 1997, and one time before then probably around 1992 or 1993.
D'oh, I messed up. 2008 and 1998. Way to mess that one up and do a triple post. Sorry, Jay. :(
That's okay....
YOUR LIFESTYLE OFFENDS ME! lol j/k
But I am severely jealous.
I hope this happens soon: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1153575/Found-gene-grow-new-teeth.html
Interesting, but the journalist's imagination is running wild, I think: they don't seem to understand that ameloblasts (in vivo) live deep within your mandible/gums and don't ever migrate into the oral cavity, i.e. it's unrealistic to expect ameloblasts to coat old teeth with new enamel. What is more likely, but still unlikely to be seen in the next 20-30 years, is the ability to induce production of a third or even a fourth set of adult teeth. However, the problem is that the gene they spoke of ties in to the immune system, i.e. it's possible that inducing this gene to overactivate could result in unforeseen autoimmune side effects.
I think a safer, more practical approach (one we could easily see in the next 10-20 years if there was enough market demand to pique an entrepreneur's interest) is to coat adult teeth as they erupt (i.e. at age 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, what have you) with something akin to "bacteriocidal teflon". It would be poisonous to bacteria but not to humans and it would be permanently affixed to the outside of your teeth. If it's clear, fantastic; if it's not clear, perhaps mix it in with an artificial whitener. (Perhaps opt to do that anyway for people with a family history of yellow teeth.)
Post a Comment