i hate my teeth!

[stefan]

just had my 3rd root canal done today, tooth #2 which was hard to reach ... ugh.

not looking forward to the future.

those who have good teeth ... count your blessings!

[Sombeech]

ouch. it's that sugar, man.

Last time I had any major work done, I puked from the gas. Corn Pops.

[stefan]

ouch. it's that sugar, man.

well, it's really genetics, shite teeth run in one line of my family. as a result, for years i've tried to do what i can to reduce certain types of sugar intake. dried fruits and candy are particularly bad for decay.

i did learn an interesting tidbit, while most artificial sweetners do promote the bacteria that decay your teeth, splenda interestingly does not.

[DiscGo]

I also have horrible teeth. I hate it. I totally feel your pain!

[Randi]

ouch. it's that sugar, man.

well, it's really genetics, shite teeth run in one line of my family. as a result, for years i've tried to do what i can to reduce certain types of sugar intake. dried fruits and candy are particularly bad for decay.

i did learn an interesting tidbit, while most artificial sweetners do promote the bacteria that decay your teeth, splenda interestingly does not.

Wow. That's terrible! I'm sorry for you man! I've had my share of cavities but never had a root canal (yet). I like candy too much to nix it from my diet, but I rarely drink soda.

I think one of the worst things you can do for your teeth (and your kids teeth) is to drink/allow them to drink too many sodas. I rarely buy it and we've never really had it in the house unless it was left over from a party.

That stuff eats away at the enamle of your teeth (not to mention it's bad for your bones). Any carbonated drink is BAD!

It's carbonated water which eats through rock and creates solution caves!

[sparker1]

Sorry about that, stefan. I always had good teeth but bad gums. So, gum surgery isn't much fun, either. On top of that, my many years of chewing ice finally resulted in several cracks in my teeth, followed by root canals and crowns, bridges, then a partial. Yep, I'd do it differently if I had the chance.

[Last Child]

Coming from someone who has tens of thousands of dollars invested in my teeth and more to come (one of my main reason for always wearing a full face helmet) let me say that I doubt very seriously that it is food, sugar, diet, whatever that is causing this. Root canals are not always due to cavities.

Let me guess, you are a teeth grinder or clencher? Especially at night while sleeping? Any jaw popping or pain? When you take your first bite of food in the morning do you get pains in your jaw? Gums receding? Sensitive teeth? Headaches? Any of these things sound familiar.

You can create an awful lot of pressure on your teeth by doing this. Thus causing problems in the roots of the teeth. This is not something that every dentist can fix or even knows about or is willing to admit to. This is often caused by a misplacement of your jaw. This can be adjusted but is expensive as hell. Look into TMJ disorders.

Mine stems from an injury in 1975 when I was in junior high school. I was wrestling a student teacher and smacked my jaw on his head. Knocked me out and splattered teeth all over the mat. Ever since then I have had issues. I used to grind real bad at night. To the point of waking up in the morning with teeth particles in my mouth. I no longer have that problem to that extent nor do I have as many killer headaches. I do still clench at night sometimes. I am currently getting my jaw repositioned (not surgically either). It's got a long ways to go too. It also takes some adjustment and sometimes rebuilding of teeth to get things to fit right.

I also have some serious sinus problems that my dentist thinks will improve once my jaw gets back to its proper location. It is quite fascinating how much your jaw position affects so many different areas of your body and how many other medical issues can be attributed to this.

I feel your pain man. Be very picky about your dentist too. I and my wife have had some very bad work done by so called "good" dentists. Yeah, those of you with good teeth are oh so lucky.

[stefan]

I also have horrible teeth. I hate it. I totally feel your pain!

ahh, excellent, we can commiserate!

Wow. That's terrible! I'm sorry for you man! I've had my share of cavities but never had a root canal (yet). I like candy too much to nix it from my diet, but I rarely drink soda.

aww, thanks randi. i eliminated sodas ages ago, with the exception of it being in hard beverages, naturally no candy for me, but chocolate, is an infrequent treat i'll never give up!

Sorry about that, stefan. I always had good teeth but bad gums. So, gum surgery isn't much fun, either. On top of that, my many years of chewing ice finally resulted in several cracks in my teeth, followed by root canals and crowns, bridges, then a partial. Yep, I'd do it differently if I had the chance.

wow, yikes! i always worry about my gums. it's amazing the amount of time spent getting the dental work done. sorry to hear about all your work ... that sounds terrible!

Root canals are not always due to cavities.

that's interesting. all of mine have been due to cavities. (standard case) i have very deep fillings, in most of my teeth. this one was an old filling about 10 years old which had decay underneath that had reached the nerve ... hence, the root canal.

Let me guess, you are a teeth grinder or clencher? Especially at night while sleeping? Any jaw popping or pain? When you take your first bite of food in the morning do you get pains in your jaw? Gums receding? Sensitive teeth? Headaches? Any of these things sound familiar.

Look into TMJ disorders.

a close friend of mine has TMJ. pretty intense. i've witnessed her grinding fits. quite troubling.

Mine stems from an injury in 1975 when I was in junior high school.

yikes!

Yeah, those of you with good teeth are oh so lucky.

heh, seriously. it always leaves me dumbfounded when someone says, "yeah i hardly brush and i've never had one cavity."

[stefan]

my first real shocker of a tooth story came on halloween 2006. a tooth that had a root canal and crown started to hurt. at first it was minor discomfort, but over the course of 24 hours it became horrific pain that prevented me from being able to sleep with out a real pain killer. i went in for emergency the following morning. basically, the tooth had cracked, from the interface between the tooth and the crown, all the way down the entire tooth to the root.

only one thing to do at this point ... yank it!

pain started on halloween ... and ironically it was tooth #13. not superstitious, but the coincidence is amusing nonetheless.

drilling the neighboring teeth to place a bridge sounded much less favorable than getting a dental implant, which is what i ended up getting. the dental implant so far has been superb. i hope it lasts the decades it's said it will. kinda crazy knowing i got a titanium screw under there.

but seriously, it's kinda wild to imagine teeth problems before modern dentistry.