Myths Of Dentistry And The Dentist - FORTUNE HEALTH PLUS INITIATIVE DENTAL GUIDE
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Myths Of Dentistry And
The Dentist
FORTUNE HEALTH PLUS
INITIATIVE DENTAL GUIDE2
Hello,
This a dental guide featuring common myths of dentistry and a practical
guide on oral health preventive measures.
This guide has been prepared in an interactive manner and also doubles as a
personal teacher clearing your doubts and answering “unasked” questions.
This guide is an initiative and design of Fortune Health Plus Initiative NGO that
improves and sustains communities through interventions in Public health,
Community development, Education and Empowerment.
(Read more here: www.fortunehealthplusinitiative.org)
Enjoy your ride with your personal dental health teacher and instructor!
www.fortunehealthplusinitiative.org3 Myth 1: The Dentist Only Knows And Can Only
Take Care Of Teeth
The dentist is thoroughly trained to recognize other basic diseases. He/she can also give first line
treatment, counsel and give a proper referral to the expert on that area of the body.
For example, a dentist can give appropriate dietary advice, talk about hypertension or give you
prescription to at least improve the condition till you get to the expert.
Your dentist can attend to emergencies, like accident cases. He can stabilize a fracture pending
the arrival of the orthopaedic surgeon, relieve general pain & discomfort and admit patients.
www.fortunehealthplusinitiative.org4 Myth 2: A Dentist Only Remove Teeth
This is a misconception the dentist is battling with every day, even with his educated and well
exposed clients.
This misconception is as a result of lack of proper dental awareness, influence of parents,
relatives, friends, colleagues and peers who themselves do not have the right and appropriate
dental health education.
Late presentation leaves the dentist with no other choice than to remove the teeth.
Poverty, the almighty problem of the developing world is also a contributing factor to this
misconception.
www.fortunehealthplusinitiative.org5 Myth 3: Scaling And Polishing Will Ruin
My Taste Buds
“Cleaning of teeth” is known as scaling and polishing.
Oral hygiene is the cornerstone of good oral health. If your teeth and mouth are generally
clean, you are less likely to develop diseases in your mouth.
The dentist or dental hygienist clean the teeth so as to remove dirts and stains on the gum and
teeth that one can not clean. For example, in between the teeth and the extreme corners.
The dentist has the advantage of seeing those areas of the mouth you cannot directly see and
uses specialized machines and instruments that would work better, faster and effectively than
your toothbrush or chewing sticks.
www.fortunehealthplusinitiative.org6 Myth 4: Dental Diseases Do Not Kill
This is also not true!
Common dental abscess arising from untreated holes and graduating to soft tissue
swellings can kill if unduly delayed.
There are also oral cancers.
Any unusual swelling or pus discharge in the mouth must be reported to the dentist on
time.
www.fortunehealthplusinitiative.org7 Myth 5: Dental Treatment Is Cheap
Dental treatment, even at government hospitals are very expensive.
Prevention is better and cheaper than cure.
Brush your teeth very well twice each day, especially last thing at night.
Reduce consumption of simple sugars as seen in refined carbohydrates in snacks, chocolates and chewing gum.
Soft drinks/soda are not left out, especially for children.
Clean in between our teeth with dental flosses and not tooth picks.
Fruits and vegetables are a must take in copious quantities.
Tobacco smoking, snuffing and reversed smoking are liable to cause cancers of the mouth and even lead to cancers of
other parts of the body, especially the lungs.
www.fortunehealthplusinitiative.org8 Myth 6: Tooth Removal Will Cause
Damage To The Brain/Head/Heart
Tooth extraction, when done by a trained and qualified personnel cannot and will not
result in death, neither will it cause injury to the head or brain.
It is a truth that the teeth are in the head and are close to the throat, nose, ears and in
fact the eyes and indirectly to the brain.
The dentist is trained in good techniques and procedures to remove each of the thirty-
two teeth in the adult mouth and the twenty teeth in the child with specific instruments
in such a way that not even the next tooth is done any harm.
This guaranty is not here when you patronize quacks.
www.fortunehealthplusinitiative.org9 Myth 7: Any Doctor Or Medical
Professional Can Remove Teeth
ONLY dentists should and can extract teeth.
As simple as dental extraction, removal of a tooth, may appear to be, only dentists are trained
and qualified to remove teeth.
Any other medical professional doing this is being overzealous and overreaching, and therefore
such actions can be at his own risk or that of the person being treated.
Such medical professional may not be seen by the regulator, the Nigerian Medical and Dental
council, as exercising proper and reasonable care and may therefore be liable, should there be
a casualty.
The proper thing to do is to refer all dental cases to the dentist. However, they can give first line
treatment to reduce pain and discomfort.
www.fortunehealthplusinitiative.org10 Myth 8: Is It Not An Ordinary
Tooth?
No part of your body, not the least of your tooth is ordinary.
Every part of our body including the nails, hairs and unseen anus is very important and each
part must be treated with utmost care.
The mouth is the gateway to the body, hence, the body cannot grow without the mouth.
The health of the mouth is an indication of the general health of the body. So, the whole
mouth is important.
Some individuals as old as forty years have been using the mouth and teeth for such a length
of time, yet had never visited the dental clinic, not even for check-up or preventive care.
www.fortunehealthplusinitiative.org11 Myth 9: Heredity Can Not Be
Prevented!
"My parents have dental problems, there is nothing I can do to prevent the ailment, so it is not
my fault". It may be your fault actually.
Although some dental ailments can be hereditary, but a lot depends on the environment and
your own factors.
You may not have dental problems like your parents had because of better civilized
environments, better education and exposure, better dental facilities and improved personal
care.
Do not condemn yourself to what your parents went through, neither condemn your own
children to what you went through.
www.fortunehealthplusinitiative.org12
Fortune Health Plus Initiative (FHePIn) is a registered Non-Governmental Organization with the vision of
improving and sustaining communities through interventions. Basically, it has its focus on Public Health, Education,
Empowerment and Community Development.
FHePIn is also duly registered with the Social Welfare component of the Ministry of Women Affairs and also the
Ministry of Health Oyo State for approval, recognition and collaboration. The Organization is governed by five Board
members, various Key Vision Drivers and Unit Heads with the Head Quarters at 70, Liberty Road, Ibadan, Oyo State.
In a short time of establishment, she has successfully implemented numerous projects on health - Cervical Cancer
Screening and Treatment for women, Health Awareness/free treatment program, collaboration with Rotary Family
Health Days program and several others.
FHePIn is also a part of the Monitoring team under the Civil Society Action Coalition on Education for all
(CSACEFA) of the 2013/2014 Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) and State Universal Basic Education
Board (SUBEB) Projects on the provision of basic amenities and quality education of schools in Oyo State.
FHePIn has also implemented an In-School Youth Empowerment Program where a selected number of secondary
school students were empowered with a variety of vocational skills during the summer vacation.
For more information, visit: www.fortunehealthplusinitiative.org
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