I'm a Dentist. Doing a Q&A for Dental Health Week

Ljasonlah on 06/08/2019 - 10:53
Last edited 09/08/2019 - 11:34

Hi Guys, been a member of Ozbargain for a many years now.

Some of you may know that I'm a dentist. I've given some input previously, but its Dental Health Week, so my clinic is doing a Q&A Session where you can ask whatever dental or teeth related questions and I'll try my best to answer. Its going to a a live stream on facebook format. But I would really love to have some questions beforehand to answer. Not really an ozbargain AMA in the traditional sense, but hopefully still helpful for some people.

So if you have anything you want to ask, or something you've avoided, or if its difficult to ask a dentist in person, (eg fear of going etc), feel free to ask me!

The facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/GlenmoreParkDentist/

Please comment on the link or below here and I'll do my best to answer in the live stream. The live stream should be taking place 7:15pm this Thursday.

Cheers!

EDIT 1: wow thanks for the great response. Probably way too much to talk about in one live stream, so I will pick the most interesting topics and overlapping questions and talk about them. Dental health week is all about education and starting a conversation.
With the other questions that I dont touch upon in the live stream (i dont want to drone on and on) I will try and answer them here when I have time later. Thanks again.

EDIT 2: Live stream is done and dusted. Please let me go home and type up some answers here for you guys.

EDIT 3: Alright, The video is up on the facebook page anyone wants to watch it. I think I covered the below topics:
- How often you should visit the dentist
- Whitening and DIY kits
- Charcoal toothpastes
- Electric vs Manual tootbrushes
- Airfloss/waterpik
- FLOSSING
- Mouthwashes
- Brushing before or after breakfast?
- Gum disease
- Root canal and alternatives
- Jaw pain and grinding
- Why does dentistry cost so much?

Thankyou to those who asked questions and watched the video and hope you can give us a 'like' or comment on the video. I have answered the ones I skipped below here in the comments. There have been some very useful discussions also below.

Health & Beauty

Comments

  • onetwothreefour on 06/08/2019 - 12:41
    +3

    Why is it cheaper to go on holiday overseas for 2 weeks and get treatment done than having work done in Australia?

    • jasonlah on 06/08/2019 - 13:01

      I assume you mean larger more invasive treatments such as implants etc?

    • afoveht on 06/08/2019 - 19:00
      +2

      Because someone goes on an overseas holiday - if it's not you it's the dentist, and they'll cost more because they fly business and stay at more expensive places.

      • Spanglish on 07/08/2019 - 17:52

        I had a root canal done once and after every session when I went to book the next visit the receptionist informed me the dentist would be going overseas for a month.
        It ended up taking about six months before it was all finished, albeit poorly.

    • Geoff-bargain on 07/08/2019 - 10:49

      And follow up question - is it just as good if the dentist in Thailand has got his dentistry degree from Australia?

      • blehgg on 07/08/2019 - 17:40

        Just like any profession ~ there are bad and good dentists.

        I know people who have "masters" in IT who don't even know what a "Primary Key" is….

        I'd be more worried about going to Thailand, getting stuff done and finding out stuff has gone wrong after coming back to Australia

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 10:39
      +3

      if you go to a developing country like vietnam or thailand of course its going to be cheaper. They have lower costs, lower regulations, less stringent standards. Same reason why clothes and food, and accomodation is cheaper in those countries.
      Its risky though, you dont know their infection control or sterilisation standards. I wouldnt risk it personally.

  • tdrive on 06/08/2019 - 12:55
    +1

    Are at home whitening production like "hismile" actually bad for you, or is this just dentist using scare tactics to sell the same service at a higher price?

    • jasonlah on 06/08/2019 - 12:59

      really really good question, I will be talking about this. Thankyou.

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 10:40
      +3

      I talked about this in the video. Hismile doesnt work. the before and after pics you can see they have used instagram filters to brighten the picture, and the lip and skin tone is different in the after pictures.

      Risk is that it damages the gums and teeth surface and if you dont have the teeth check before you may have undiagnosed decay etc which whitening will worsen.

      • tdrive on 09/08/2019 - 19:26

        Thanks for the response! Appreciate the time you took to go back through the comments.

  • jenflav on 06/08/2019 - 14:48
    +3

    Another question, during the morning rush, when is it best to brush teeth? Before or after breakfast?

    • ozbjunkie on 07/08/2019 - 21:59
      +1

      I heard not to brush after you eat acidic foods as the enamel is weak, eg after vomiting or drinking soda, salad with vinegar etc…in for the answer to this one.

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 10:41
      +2

      i brush before. But it depends on your routine. If you want to brush after then wait 20-30mins if you have anything acidic like fruit juice

  • Taro Milk Tea on 06/08/2019 - 14:59
    +2

    Why do many dentist have poor taste of music? Last dentist I visited, first visit he asked me what music do i want to listen, which I said whatever..(just hurry up!), and he ended up putting K-pop song as he is a big fan.

    Second visit, he asked me again what music do i want to listen, which I answer AGAIN whatever any song will just be fine.
    Then he ended up putting Frozen song as he loves the movie.

    • sagrules on 06/08/2019 - 15:53
      +1

      LOL

    • onetwothreefour on 07/08/2019 - 06:24
      +5

      Is your dentist an 8 year old girl?

      • Taro Milk Tea on 07/08/2019 - 08:59
        +1

        He might have a heart of an 8 years old

  • Godric on 06/08/2019 - 17:20
    +1

    Why do braces cost $6k?

    • geoffs87 on 07/08/2019 - 12:21
      -1

      This probably answers that question

    • [Deactivated] on 07/08/2019 - 16:13
      +3

      I had braces for 24 months.

      The first few appointments required x-rays. Then there was the moulds/casts of my teeth. Then there was a series of photographs and calculations I did not understand. So there was a lot that happened leading up to getting the braces.

      Then there was 24 months of monthly visits and a few more here and there when things came off or was cutting my cheeks.

      Seems like a lot of work for $6k TBH. I did have mine done by someone who didn't just palm of the tasks to an assistant and she was meticulous. (Maybe just for me because she is a friend). I calculated roughly 20-30 hours of her time which by extension, her assistant's time. She had a nurse by her side and a nurse working the autoclave.

      Then there's the cost of materials.

      It's not a bad gig, but I know tradies making more. Also hard work but less the investment.

    • Tech5 on 08/08/2019 - 19:35

      Braces in the vast majority of cases are a non-essential service

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 10:41

      I dont do braces at the moment, so I cant answer this question.

  • yellowfever on 06/08/2019 - 21:11
    +1

    What if you brush your teeth (using electric tooth brush) after every single meal, is that a beneficial recommendation?
    Or does your teeth and gums get worn down, if you brush too much?
    Ingesting too much toothpaste residue any harm?

    Which Listerine is better, the green, blue or purple one? I really need a dentist to suggest a non biased fact.

    Which Oral B electric brushhead is best? What would you suggest your partner to buy?

    A dentist once recommend me to choose a private hospital surgeon to remove my wisdoms (thru surgery), but did not really pursuade me to chose public hospital surgeon. Was he biased and is this common practice with dentists?

    Is it recommended for parents to rip out their kids really loose teeth and suck on a tissue or what's the proper procedure here?
    Surely going to a dentist is an overkill expense?

    • Tech5 on 08/08/2019 - 19:36

      I can answer the one about surgeons. We do not get compensated for who we refer to beyond possibly a christmas hamper if we have a good relationship.

      We usually refer to who we know will do a good job. Personally, I don't know the names of any public hospital surgeons and I feel like they would have a very long waiting list for elective surgery. Where I am, that list goes for years

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 10:45
      +1

      Just brush twice daily. Once in the morning and once at night before you go to bed. You dont have to brush after EVERY meal. I dont to that.

      Listerine I dont recommend unless you like the feeling of it. However if you have implant the listerine has been shown to reduced inflammation around the implant surface.

      Oral B brush head i use the precision clean head.

      A dentist should not 'persuade' you to choose public surgeon or private surgeon. I give options and discuss the benenit and risk and you choose yourself.

      As a parent you can pull out the very loose baby teeth yourself. If its very loose and hanging on, just wash your hands, get a tissue grab it and pull out to the side (cheek surface) and it should come out.

  • lbsyc on 07/08/2019 - 00:15
    +1

    do you spit out the toothpaste after you finished brushing?

    is mouthwash no better than just gargle with water?

    is tongue cleaning necessary?

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 10:45
      +2

      Brush, Spit all toothpaste out as much as you can and dont rinse with water or mouthwash straight after

      I clean my tongue with the toothbrush, gets rid of bacteria that causes bad breathe

      • Homr on 09/08/2019 - 12:07

        Don't rinse mouth with water straight after?? what?? That gross man!

        • jasonlah on 11/08/2019 - 20:41

          yeah you want the fluoride residue on your teeth to protect it.

  • [Deactivated] on 07/08/2019 - 00:26
    -6

    When did we have a Dental Health Week?

    I mean, Breast Cancer Awareness (week? Month?) is silly enough but I get it, some people are really ignorant of how to detect lumps and other abnormalities but teeth? Tooth decay and pain is very obvious and so are the prevention and solution.

    Maybe we should have a not falling down the stairs awareness month.

    • TrendyTim on 07/08/2019 - 14:36
      +1

      Because you shouldn't only go to the dentist when you have pain and tooth decay is not always obvious. I know i'm guilty of not going to the dentist often enough, like once in the last 10 years, because i had to see the dentist 4 times for the one tooth (she couldn't get it right) and during one of those she got me to bite down on that spike thing, but didn't tell me to do it gently and it killed, traumatised me only went 6 years ago due to a filling breaking off.

      • [Deactivated] on 07/08/2019 - 15:09
        +1

        I'm not saying that you should only attend due to pain and that practice has been a standard practice for decades now.

        This "Dental Week" isn't going to change any misconceptions of routine checkups as by definition, anything ongoing is perpetual. The dental week is only there for a week.

        So what I do not understand is why there is a "Dental Week" and not the actual preventative practice.

    • Tech5 on 08/08/2019 - 20:10

      You are just as likely to lose teeth to tooth decay, as you are to lose it to periodontal disease. What kind of symptoms should we expect from the second?

      Additionally, many don't see the importance of routine checkups

      • [Deactivated] on 08/08/2019 - 20:58

        It seems people think a dental week fixes problems. It is just a way to increase marketing revenue by newspapers, magazines, TV…

        Want to actually increase awareness? Have basic health classes in school. If that doesn't work, what hope does one week of noise make to adults?

        Besides, telling someone who doesn't want to go to a dentist about what gum disease is probably has the opposite effect. They're going to pick the symptoms they don't have and go, "well, I'm all good."

        How do you change the habit of people who ignore "prevention is better than cure" from only attending due to pain? It sure isn't telling them some more.

        Is it supposed to be a friendly reminder then? I pretty sure dentist send out recall reminders.

        So don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to diminish the good work of dentist, I'm just saying that Dental Health week doesn't help anyone but advertisement platforms.

        • Tech5 on 08/08/2019 - 21:02
          +1

          Actually is tbh. I've lost count of the amount of patients who came in to "fix a toothache" who turned into 6 month recall patients without any issues.

          I agree about your sentiment. This is the problem with all downstream 1:1 interventions. It often does not work. As dentists, we do a lot of upstream advocacy work with governments, but it is always slow progress

          • [Deactivated] on 08/08/2019 - 21:20

            @Tech5: Exactly. First point of contact is still pain. What makes the patient interested in ongoing contact? Not dental week but a good experience at the dentist. Good job doing that. It's not easy.

            With dental diseases, majority are self preventable is it not? You cannot get government to blanket enforce people to do the right thing. It's not dissimilar to obesity. No amount of awareness funding is going to make people run.

            What makes people want to prevent problems is to prevent pain. Since we can't go out and hurt people (we really shouldn't), the next best thing is to let them feel the inevitable and let them feel the financial pain.

            Pain is a great teacher and if we remove physical pain and financial pain, people are just going to be more negligent.

            So, dentist, dental products and pharmaceutical companies paying for advertising space on Dental Week isn't doing anyone any good. (Except folks at the local Chronicles.)

            • jasonlah on 11/08/2019 - 20:42

              @[Deactivated]: lol contrary to popular belief, I dont actually want my patients to be in pain. My life would be much easier if people came in for 6 or 12monthly checkup and cleans and had nothing wrong with them.

              • [Deactivated] on 11/08/2019 - 21:09

                @jasonlah: Of course you do not wish them pain. I don't think anyone but the most horrible people would wish that.

                Pain is there whether we wish it and it will/is the reason for many people to seek a dentist for the first time. Not awareness.

                People stay away for the same reasons too, fear of pain and fear of costs.

                Awareness campaigns that run from sponsorships increase the advertising expense of practices. Those costs can be better put towards literally anything and be more beneficial.

                • jasonlah on 12/08/2019 - 00:22

                  @[Deactivated]: The purpose of dental health week is basically to spark a conversation, hopefully spread some awareness.
                  Its the same as many other special awareness weeks like speech pathology week, legacy week, missing persons week, national child protection week etc etc.

                  Its all about starting a conversation. We all have to start somewhere.

  • Jaystea on 07/08/2019 - 09:40
    +1

    Approximately how much should I pay for invisalign? And is there an insurance policy you prefer for the purposes of dental rebates for orthodontics?

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 10:46

      I have no idea on this sorry. Visit your dentist or orthodontist and you can get second opinions.

  • Save Medicare on 07/08/2019 - 09:54
    +1

    Why do you earn more than all doctors in the first 15 years of your careers, and most doctors thereafter?

    As someone who works in Glenmore Park, i'm sure you see a lot of people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. Do you think that general dentistry should be fully covered by medicare at the cost of reduced reimbursement to dentists?

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 10:53
      +2

      Very untrue statement about how much we earn. Dentists start off with a higher graduate salary but the scope to increase is limited.
      Compare this to doctors and surgeons and anaethestists where they have much higher scope to increase earnings as their careers progress.

      I think preventive dentistry should be covered in part by medicare, why they dont cover teeth is beyond me. But the the problem is also where is the money going to come from? Higher taxes likely. And you dont want it to end up like the UK system NHS dentistry where the public dental services are so spread out and underfunded that it results in very poor quality work.

  • vasya on 07/08/2019 - 10:01

    My kids (around 10 years old) have whitish spots (the spots are more white than their teeth colour) on their teeth. Is it something to worry about ?

    • blehgg on 07/08/2019 - 11:26

      Dental fluorosis is a common cause of white spots on the teeth. There are several possible causes of white spots on the teeth. People usually get this when they are young if they consumed too much fluoride as a child. It is usually a harmless condition that only tends to develop before the teeth break through the gums.

      • TLDR - use kids toothpaste - make sure not to digest + spit and rinse.
      • vasya on 07/08/2019 - 16:12

        thank you!

      • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 10:53

        i second this.

  • ankor on 07/08/2019 - 10:13
    +1

    What do you think about with respect to private health funds buying and taking over dentistry? They offer cheap, or 100% rebates on dental checks etc. Seems like a great deal!? So what are the positives and negatives of that?

  • omgilia on 07/08/2019 - 10:23
    +3

    A combo of ten silly, basic and curiosity questions

    1) In the morning do you brush then eat or do you eat then brush and why not the other?
    2) Should you floss in the morning if you did so the previous night or would that be a waste of time? (bonus listerine or simply warm salt water to gargle)
    3) Follow up question to two have you had clients that purposely don't floss or clean their teeth on appointments with a general cleaning scheduled? (guilty here)
    3) Do you advocate for home-job teeth whitening with carbamide peroxide / bi-card soda etc etc or done professionally? (bias question I know)
    4) What are the long term implications of a missing teeth number 14?
    5) Do you believe Australia should be moving towards a medicare scheme for possibly free once or twice checkup yearly, cleaning, filling etc for each person?
    6) What time generally should you stop eating and drinking at night before bedtime? (Current dentist said chips are ok but soft drinks are a big no no)
    7) Have you had clients that went from complete neglect of oral health to one of your best patients? How does that make you feel as a person/profession?
    8) Any out of the ordinary cases that stuck by you so far in your career?
    9) Manual or electric toothbrush and floss or water-pik? You have to pick one of each and the pros and cons
    10) Lucky last - Would you inform your patient on a shocking job that a previous dentist had done that you had to fix?

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 22:39
      +1

      Sorry I missed this question scrolling through
      1 - talked about this in the video, it depends on your routine. If you brush after then wait 20-30mins after you eat then brush, not straight away
      2 - I floss at night only. Once a day is already a really good effort. Nobody likes flossing.
      3 - lol yes.
      4 - if you are missing a tooth the risk is that the other teeth drift into the space, making it harder to restore with a implant or bridge later down the track.
      5 - I talked about this in the video also. Medicare should pay for some preventive treatment but then they would have to find the money from somewhere, likely tax people more etc and then people would complain etc etc… different governments have tried and failed over the years
      6 - doesnt matter imo. just brush before you go to bed and floss.
      7 - yes of course, the best one was a patient with an addiction, who overcame his personal problems, then came to me very ashamed and embarrassed about his teeth. Took many visits but he is much better now and appreciates his oral health. Good outcomes like these are literally the reason I became a dentist. When i was younger I had shocking teeth and the orthodontist fixed them with braces and literally lifted my confidence in life, so yeah it is a good feeling. As opposed to people tell me to my face they hate the dentist lol
      8 - see above
      9 - talked about this in great detail in the video. I use oral B electric, and normal floss.
      10 - Its difficult talking about shocking jobs. Reason is patients forget, or dont know what happened or their story is wrong. I dont know what circumstance the 'shocking job' was done under and what was discussed. Unless it is a very obvious case of misconduct the I will err on the side of caution and just tell them what I see during the appointment, without speculating about what was done before, but still advise the patient and they can do what they want with the information I give them.

  • Herbse on 07/08/2019 - 10:45
    +3

    Why didn't you make the thread when you can actually answer questions. Are you going to answer the questions already asked?..

    No one reads the first post, we just read the heading and start bashing the keyboard.

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 10:54

      cant please everyone

  • Geoff-bargain on 07/08/2019 - 10:47
    +1

    Can we do our own dentistry like Bob?
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgI3Y7gxMO4

    • moar bargains on 09/08/2019 - 10:52

      I was in stitches when I first saw this. Bob is a classic on WILTY.

  • roy125 on 07/08/2019 - 11:00

    I have a 2 year old that sucks his fingers to go to sleep, when and how do i stop him from doing this and how bad is it for his teeth?

    • Herbse on 07/08/2019 - 11:19
      +1

      Every dentist I speak to says that the sucking pushes the front teeth outwards and will need braces to correct if it isn't stopped quickly.

      Our child sucked her thumb from a young age and we let her do it because she slept better when we left her. I wish we didn't because the habit still exists after a year of trying to get her to stop.

      We have tried:
      - Silicone finger covers. Covers one finger, but she moves onto another finger
      - Terrible tasting nail polish from the chemist. It works for a while but because she is so obsessed she just pushes through the taste, especially at night when she wants it the most.

      Eventually I sowed up a fabric mitten with Velcro at the bottom which she cannot remove for the night time and when driving in the car. We use the nail polish during the day, and are super vigilant when carrying her or leaving her alone always removing her finger out.
      It's gotten better, and will take probably another year before she drops the habit completely

      • takezo on 07/08/2019 - 11:40

        How old is your kid?

        • Herbse on 07/08/2019 - 11:42
          +1

          3 now. We started to try and stop her at 2.

          Some kids start kinder and prep with the habit. We wanted to avoid that.

      • roy125 on 08/08/2019 - 11:01
        +1

        Yeah he has been to see the dentist who said the same so we are trying to encourage him to stop but it's hard to police through the night. We encourage him to cuddle his teddy to go to bed rather than suck his finger, which works, but as he re-settles during the night the fingers inevitably get sucked.

        Tough one because as you say he uses them for comfort and re-settling.

        I saw some elbow brace which stops them from being able to bend their arm and get their fingers in their mouth that I was tempted to try. I kind of fell bad though as I don't want him to develop anxiety from not being able to comfort himself.

    • Laurana on 07/08/2019 - 22:55

      Our daughter did it a lot for comfort. She had an adorable “suck thumb plus grab adult ear” routine which she did before bed or when sad/sick.

      We’ve heard similar as Herbse, but that it was okay for the first couple of years, and to stop it after age 3 or so.

      We ended up distracting her when she was doing it out of boredom and allowing it for comfort. Then when she turned four or so we had a conversation with her and explained why she shouldn’t suck her thumb, then just provided her with a quick reminder whenever she was doing it which worked for us. She’s 7 now and we had even forgotten that she used to do it until we saw a photo recently.

  • chillwok on 07/08/2019 - 11:28
    +1

    i would like to go to the dentist to get my teeth cleaned. i only want my teeth cleaned and nothing else. why do dentist charge an additional check up cost?

    • blehgg on 07/08/2019 - 11:37
      +1

      If the dentist cleans your teeth and notices that you have a "sign" of cancer in your mouth - do you want to know about it?

      • chillwok on 08/08/2019 - 11:41
        +1

        that's my problem then. i only want to pay for my teeth to be cleaned and nothing else.

        • blehgg on 08/08/2019 - 13:14

          Not sure any dentist would be able to do this due to liability issues
          - e.g. you suing them after things go wrong.

          I'd be seeking legal advice, and then you'd need to find a dentist willing to see you and follow that advice.

          Have a look at DNRs and how complex they are to have written up and adhered to (especially in Australia).

        • Tech5 on 08/08/2019 - 19:16

          We are unable to due to duty of care. If you were in only 3months ago then sure, we might do a cursory check and not charge

        • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 10:57

          legally cant do this. The checkup cost is a consultation fee.

    • lainey13 on 09/08/2019 - 01:09
      +1

      Go to dental hygienist instead.

  • porkupine888 on 07/08/2019 - 12:07
    -4

    Surprised NO ozbargainer asked if toothpaste and the entire dental industry was a scam / money making when alternate therapies such as oil pulling and or natural / zero-waste toothpaste was easily made / available and practiced by indigenous / aboriginal / natural folk that have been doing it for generations / centuries without access to toothpaste or toothbrushes?

    Try it yourself as a $8 challenge - it's quite a bit of "effort" considering each pull consumes a min 30-40 minutes of your time…. but in light of insurance / dental fees - plus it's 100% natural - why not?

    • Ozbargainlyf on 07/08/2019 - 20:29
      +4

      lol. are you still eating bush tucker too? More likely you’re eating a high carb diet, conducive to more decay than eating wigety grubs.

    • Tech5 on 08/08/2019 - 19:18

      Did these natural folk have access to a lot of refined sugars like chocolate and soft drinks? Use your head

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 22:40

      Why would you waste 30-40mins of your time a day on oil pulling when you can just brush your teeth twice daily for 2 minutes each?

  • bargainfinder on 07/08/2019 - 12:26
    +1

    Would you recommend electric tooth brush over non-electric one? If so why?

    • Ozbargainlyf on 07/08/2019 - 20:31
      +2

      For the majority of ppl, the automatic rotation is better at removing plaque than you manually rotating your brush. If you know what you’re doing, likely very little meaningful difference but for most ppl it eliminates human error

  • FareEvader on 07/08/2019 - 13:22
    +1
    1. What is the real solution to sensitive teeth?
    2. Is it bad for your teeth to get cleaned too often by the dentist? (I get mine cleaned 4-5 times a year)
    3. Which works better - Professional whitening by a dentist or those teeth whitening products you can buy online?
    • lainey13 on 09/08/2019 - 01:11
      1. Sensodyne works for me.
      2. If it's the same dentist and they haven't stopped you then I don't see why you should stop throwing your money away. You can brush TOO much but you would think a dentist would not be causing damage by cleaning that many times.
      3. You do know whitening your teeth makes them more sensitive right?
    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 22:42

      1 - depends why the teeth are sensitive. Many reasons why teeth are sensitive, eg enamel wear, erosion, decay, gum recession… there is no one size fits all solution, it depends on the diagnosis.
      2 - Ask your dentist why you need it cleaned 4-5 times a year. If you have gum disease or high rate of decay or other medical problem then that will make sense.
      3 - professional whitening works much better. Your dentist will also advise you if it is safe to do it (eg if you have sensitive teeth, whitening may make it more sensitive temporarily)

  • jenflav on 07/08/2019 - 13:22
    +3

    Do you think charcoal toothpaste make a difference in teeth whitening? What whitening toothpastes do you recommend? Thanks

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 10:58
      +1

      I answered this in the video. Dont use charcoal toothpaste.

  • kevsta on 07/08/2019 - 13:26

    Before I see my dentist I will floss, brush, mouth wash and tongue brush because I feel that it's the right thing to do.

    Do you get any patients that come in right after having lunch and still have chewed food in their mouths. Do you find this disgusting at all ?

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 22:43

      part of the job lol. Theres much worse things I see and deal with than people with old food in their mouth.

  • AssamLaksa on 07/08/2019 - 14:09
    +1

    Must we actually change our toothbrush every 3 months?

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 22:45
      +1

      3 months is around the right time to change it as the bristles wear out, and also bacteria can grow around the bristles. Think of how long you can use the same towel after showering before you need to change it… same with toothbrush head except you cant wash the toothbrush head to get rid of bacteria.

  • peterw1 on 07/08/2019 - 16:31

    do anti-vaxers allow their children to brush their teeth with fluoride based toothpaste and if so , why?

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 22:47

      You should ask an anti vaxer ;)

  • Melencir on 07/08/2019 - 17:35

    Thanks for doing this!

    I have had one dentist say I have holes that needed filling. Another dentist has looked and said he saw nothing to be concerned about.

    Are there any reasons that there could be two totally different diagnosis?

    • blehgg on 07/08/2019 - 17:49
      +1

      Subjective clinical judgement leading to possible over / under treatment.

      Some people believe in filling every hole - some people believe in prevention and management.

      Hard to say…

      • Melencir on 10/08/2019 - 20:53

        Thanks! Hadn't thought of that as a reason. I had thought a hole was a hole, either it's there and needed filling, or its not 🤔 how wrong I was

    • Tech5 on 08/08/2019 - 19:19
      +1

      It is all subjective. Each dentist has a different threshold at which they believe something needs a filling, crown etc.

      • Melencir on 10/08/2019 - 20:59

        Thanks! This was the first time I had seen different dentists, so differing opinions had literally not occurred to me.

        I had been, how to say, serially faithful to one dentist at a time until recent years.

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 10:59
      +1

      Subjective, one may have taken xrays, the other may not have. One may know your history eg you've been coming regularly and they are watching or monitoring the tooth, if you go to a new dentist obviously they dont know anything about you previously, how often you visit, how many decays youve had in the past, etc etc

      • Melencir on 10/08/2019 - 21:04

        Thanks, Jason! Subjectivity on treatment like how tech5 and blehgg explained, seems to be it.

        I don't have a history with either dentists, it was a new consultation with both.

  • [Deactivated] on 07/08/2019 - 17:35

    Some of you may know that I'm a dentist.

    We can tell from your profile pic 😁 .

    I'm curious as to approx cost of compulsory insurance? (For practicing dentist with his own practice, 1 dentist, 1 nurse)

    Also, have you got any idea why Australian dentists are paid amongst the highest in the world ?
    I was thinking perhaps it is to do with high insurance costs. Maybe it is just because Australian dentists are the best .

    • Ozbargainlyf on 07/08/2019 - 20:22

      $2000 indemnity insurance, higher if you do more high end procedures.
      If you’re talking about other business insurances etc, that’ll be around $5-10k a year depending on your turnover.

      Aus dental is of an exceptionally high standard 90+% of the time, I’d say most of us are compensated above average, but fair given the balance of technical difficulty and lvl of training, not to mention putting up with people/their complaints/helicopter mums etc.

    • jasonlah on 09/08/2019 - 11:01
      +2

      My indemnity insurance is $2500-3000
      Business insurance is $6000
      building insurance is $2700, we cant just use AAMI or normal insurers.
      Tax insurance is $700
      Cyber insurance (for patient files) is another $1500
      I have income insurance and needlestick injury. another $4800
      etc etc etc.. All these insurances increase every year

  • Sawtell on 07/08/2019 - 19:20

    I just paid $300 for a filling in my 9 year olds baby tooth. Why? Its going to fall out anyway who cares if it has a hole in it?

    • Ozbargainlyf on 07/08/2019 - 20:23
      +1

      space maintenance. prevents ortho issues.
      also, it can give your kid toothache

    • [Deactivated] on 07/08/2019 - 21:20

      Always get gold filling for kids.
      Tooth fairy needs some bling 😎

    • Tech5 on 08/08/2019 - 19:19

      If it is a 9 year old baby tooth, it will probably be another 2-3 years before it falls out. A lot can happen in that time

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