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Why are Americans so obsessed with dentistry?
(kbin.social)
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this post was submitted on 06 Jul 2023
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I think an important distinction should be made between dentistry and orthodontics. I believe that in many countries with public healthcare, dental coverage is pretty normal. What many governments don't pay for is orthodontics (teeth straightening, braces, bite fixing, etc) and so most people go without it (eg memes about British people having crooked teeth).
In the USA, orthodontics is a huge industry. It's all about having straight perfect teeth. I don't know why it started, but the reason it's stuck around is mostly aesthetics and inertia IMO. If everyone around you has straight teeth, you'll feel left out if you have crooked teeth. It's also a huge moneymaker for dentists themselves. I avoided dentists for several years because I got tired of them trying to sell me expensive aesthetic services, like whitening or special bite splints.
You get orthodontics under German public health care, still US American teeth are something else entirely. It feels like basically everybody has veneers over there.
And yes, the UK is something else, too, when it comes to dental health care. Not in a good way, mind you.
I'm old enough to have adult children and I know one person with veneers.
I’m old enough to have grandchildren and I know exactly zero people with veneers (in Germany – I do know people from the US with). Is this a contest?
Veneers are extremely uncommon in the US. That's what they've saying. You said it seemed like everyone here had them.