Don't pay IQ tax for these "imported" products
◎Our reporter Chen Xi
In the entertainment industry, there has always been a saying that "orthodontic teeth are comparable to plastic surgery", and many ordinary people also hope to improve their appearance by "beautifying" their teeth.
The "March 8th" International Women's Day is approaching, and major e-commerce companies have started the "Goddess Day" promotion carnival.
However, are the popular products such as tooth irrigators, whitening tooth sticks, whitening pens, and children's U-shaped toothbrushes sold online a "magic tool" or an IQ tax?
In this regard, a reporter from Science and Technology Daily interviewed Liu Dawei, the attending physician of Tianjin Debeier, and asked him to analyze these dental products one by one.
"Internet celebrity" braces: wearing high risk, orthodontics go to a professional hospital
Overwhelming, buck teeth, shark teeth... Since the lips are close to the teeth, the deformed teeth will affect the lip shape, thereby reducing the appearance.
Therefore, many people hope to make themselves look better through orthodontics.
"Actually, orthodontics is not only for improving appearance, but also for dental health." Liu Dawei said that after orthodontics, it can improve the efficiency of teeth chewing, reduce dental caries and even mandibular joint problems.
At the same time, arranging the teeth neatly can also reduce the impact of food and the formation of calculus, thereby reducing the occurrence of dental caries and periodontal lesions, and ultimately achieving the purpose of prolonging the life of the teeth.
Many people think that going to a professional dental hospital for orthodontics is expensive and the process is complicated, so they choose to straighten their teeth by self-help - buy transparent orthodontic appliances online. The price of this product ranges from ten yuan to thousands of yuan. Tooth reshaping in a month or two".
Cheaper silicone appliances sold online are similar in shape to children's muscle function trainers.
The muscle function trainer is made of silicone materials with different degrees of softness and hardness. It is specially designed to correct wrong muscle function, correct bad oral habits, and can also align teeth.
"But the muscle function trainer is a medical device. It takes a long time to collect a large amount of clinical data to produce it. It can only be produced on the basis of sufficient research." Liu Dawei pointed out that there are many non-brand products on the market, although they are similar to the muscle function trainer. Very similar, but the effect is difficult to guarantee, and it may be counterproductive.
"Many people think that the transparent appliances sold online are very similar to the invisible braces used in hospitals." Liu Dawei said that in regular hospitals, making invisible braces is very complicated.
"Before orthodontics, X-ray films, oral cone beam CT, oral tooth scanning, 3D printing of tooth models, etc. are required. The orthodontist will measure and analyze the patient's dentition and bones based on various images and model data. The doctor can make a treatment plan after fully evaluating the degree of deformity of the patient's teeth and jaws." Liu Dawei said that the orthodontist will consider the patient's facial shape, the positional relationship of the upper and lower jaws (teeth bite), periodontal root and temporal For the condition of the mandibular joint, dozens to dozens of invisible braces are tailored for it.
Patients need to replace one pair every two weeks and ensure that they are worn for more than 22 hours a day.
Such a complicated process cannot be done just by "cloud operation" on the Internet.
"Orthodontics is a professional medical practice, and the risk of doing it yourself is very high." Liu Dawei reminded that scientific orthodontics is to apply a gentle external force to each tooth by wearing braces to promote its slow movement and the process of tooth movement. The middle alveolar bone is also reconstructed, and finally the desired orthodontic effect is achieved, which generally takes several months to two or three years.
Whitening toothpaste, whitening pen: not necessarily effective, may also cause tooth acid, gum damage
As the saying goes, "one white hides a hundred ugliness", and the same applies to teeth.
Many women say that if their teeth are not white enough, they struggle to even choose a lipstick shade.
There are also many girls who feel inferior because of their yellow teeth and dare not grin.
This situation has also made cheap "white teeth artifact" such as whitening tooth sticks and whitening pens quickly become popular.
The advertising slogans such as "Effective in 7 days, yellow teeth become white" and "one stick and tear every day, the teeth can be whitened by a shade" have made many people's heart pounding.
On e-commerce platforms, many of these products have sold more than 100,000 units.
However, after using it, some people found that not only the teeth did not turn white, but also problems such as tooth acid, blackening and shrinking of the gums.
"The main component of whitening stickers and whitening pens is peroxide, which has a bleaching effect through oxidation-reduction reaction." Liu Dawei said that they have poor whitening effect on endogenous yellow teeth such as tetracycline and fluorosis; The yellow teeth caused by exogenous pigmentation such as drinking tea and smoking will not have much effect.
In addition, the color of each person's teeth is different, and there are individual differences in the effect of use.
For many people who have symptoms such as tooth acid after using whitening toothpastes and whitening pens, Liu Dawei explained that it is because the penetration of whitening drugs into the teeth will stimulate the pulp, and these substances will act on the teeth for a long time, which will cause the teeth to become irritated. Sensitive, which can make your teeth feel sour.
Moreover, prolonged exposure to high concentrations of peroxides can easily damage the soft tissue of the gums.
"Tooth whitening products are not recommended for people with underdeveloped tooth enamel." Liu Dawei added, because the acidic components in peroxide may damage the tooth enamel, make the tooth surface very rough, and cause irreversible damage.
Liu Dawei said that the color of normal and healthy teeth is slightly yellow, and there is no need to excessively pursue whitening teeth. Dental health is the most important thing.
U-shaped toothbrush for children: there are a lot of blind spots for cleaning, which increases the risk of dental caries
From birth, children need daily oral care.
However, parents who have children must have a deep understanding of how difficult it is to let their children brush their teeth well.
Therefore, when the children's U-shaped toothbrush appeared, it quickly became popular and was very popular among parents.
This U-shaped toothbrush is also known as a lazy toothbrush, and the brush head is U-shaped, similar to the shape of the teeth in the mouth.
Many children's U-shaped toothbrushes are cute and come with lights, children's songs, etc.
The businessman claims that "as long as you open your mouth, put the toothbrush in, and shake it left and right for a few times, you can complete the big project of brushing your teeth", and "360-degree wrapping, brushing your teeth without dead ends" and "little babies can operate by themselves", this sounds like It's a blessing for parents.
As everyone knows, this U-shaped toothbrush has no benefit for children with frequent caries.
"The U-shaped toothbrush is cute and easy to use, but it cannot let children master the correct way of brushing their teeth." Liu Dawei explained that the shape of the brush head of the U-shaped toothbrush is fixed, and it is difficult to completely fit all sides of the child's teeth. Children may be lazy and not use it in place, and there will be a lot of cleaning blind spots.
In addition, the bristles of U-shaped toothbrushes on the market are almost all made of silicone. This kind of bristles is soft, loose, and has poor cleaning power. It is impossible to completely remove the plaque and the soft dirt hidden in the crevices and gingival sulcus.
Long-term use of this toothbrush increases the risk of dental caries, and even more serious dental or soft tissue diseases.
Liu Dawei suggested that when choosing tooth cleaning products for children, choose the ones that are suitable for the age of children, such as toothbrushes with small soft hair and toothpastes with fluoride.