Thought using bleach to whiten teeth was harebrained? Amateur TikTok cosmeticians are now remodeling their crooked chompers with nail files in a viral trend that dentists are dubbing damaging and dumb.
โYouโre doing irreparable damage and destruction to your teeth,โ Dr. Chad Evans, co-founder of Texas-based Smile Magic Family Dental, told Insider. The father of two said he first became aware of the molar makeovers after colleagues showed him clips blowing up on TikTok. Itโs basically the bargain-bin equivalent of an enameloplasty โ a reshaping procedure involving enamel removal that one would receive from a cosmetic dentist.
However, unlike professionals who know how to file your pearly whites safely, an amateur could potentially remove vital coating, causing the tooth to become hypersensitive or even die. Evans recalled one video in which a woman with a chipped tooth filed down her two front teeth to match her imperfect toothโs length. โEssentially, what sheโs doing is sheโs shortening the lifespan of her teeth,โ he said. โThey are now compromised, and itโs just a matter of time before she starts developing serious issues.โ
Link:NY Post