Teeth filing on TikTok: “It’s a health disaster!”

in collaboration with

Alain Amzalag (dental surgeon)

In recent months, influencers have been appearing on the social network TikTok with filed teeth. In their videos, they show a before/after of their smile. On the first, their teeth are reduced, filed down and very fragile. On the second, they are white and aligned. This practice worries practitioners, who notice that more and more young people want to follow the trend, attracted by the idea of ​​a “perfect smile”. Many of them travel abroad, especially to Turkey, to have their teeth cut and receive porcelain veneers and crowns. An invasive and aggressive practice, to which the dentist Alain Amzalag warns, co-author – with his son Jérémy – of the book What if your dentist could save your life! published by Hugo Doc.

More and more young people are going abroad, especially to Turkey, to have veneers or dental crowns placed. What is the difference between the two practices?

Alain Amzalag: You should know that these acts are invasive and irreversible. Laying veneers is an extremely delicate technique that requires significant expertise. This involves partially reducing the tooth with great care. We will then place a porcelain veneer on this tooth, which will reconstitute the material, color and shape of the tooth. When we decide to put veneers, it is to change the position of the teeth, the color, and to have an ideal smile. It is cosmetic dentistry, which remains very aggressive in a young subject.

The placement of crowns is even more aggressive than that of veneers; It’s about a “homothetic reduction of the tooth”, at 360 degrees, to cover it with a porcelain crown. It is normally rare for a young person to have crowns placed. The placement of crowns on the teeth of the smile is done when the teeth are really damaged, and certainly not at 20 years old. For young people, it is extremely violent, which could lead to the loss of teeth at a more advanced age, if the care is not perfectly carried out.

Is this practice prohibited in France?

Alain Amzalag: There is no ban on this practice in France. But it is rare from a medical point of view that veneers or crowns are placed on a young subject. A dentist who has a minimum of ethics and professional conscience will not apply this type of treatment to a subject who has healthy teeth. So what is the temptation abroad? The cost is certainly lower, but the aesthetic result and the safety of the care will not necessarily be guaranteed. When carrying out such delicate work, regular control sessions are planned, which will not be possible abroad. The risk of permanently damaging the teeth is immense. In general, if a dentist is conscientious, he cannot give in to such a request.

What are the risks run by these young people?

Alain Amzalag: To place veneers or dental crowns, the teeth are reduced. In both cases, the reduction of the tooth is irreversible, once the veneer or crown has been placed. If it breaks, the youngster is left with a half-reduced tooth. It is a health disaster. The aesthetic result will not necessarily be there, and the medical risks (dental and medical infections) are immense. When we reduce the teeth, we make them more vulnerable and we damage them. Filing thus removes the protective layer of the tooth, which can be attacked by cavities or bacteria, and make the tooth more sensitive. In addition, you should know that the instruments to reduce the tooth have a very high speed of rotation, and cause significant heating of the tooth. There is therefore a significant risk of mortification of the tooth; the nerve can become infected, and you may lose your tooth over time.

What are some other tooth-safe alternatives?

Alain Amzalag: When a young patient wants to see his smile corrected, only orthodontics can realign the teeth in a natural and safe way. It can also whiten teeth. The laying of veneers can be considered in an older subject when his teeth are too damaged.