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2023-11: Warosu is now out of extended maintenance.

/diy/ - Do It Yourself

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342230 No.342230 [Reply] [Original]

Hey /diy/, I live in America, where any medical procedure costs more than it should, and I want to learn how to be my own dentist, to eliminate the need to spend $200+ every six months for anything other than a root canal or cavity.

How do I get started with dental scrapers and polishing tools? Do I have to buy my own scraper, or is there a household substitute that I can use? Is an electric toothbrush sufficient to use to polish my teeth? What can I use as a good tooth polish, and/or how can I mix up a flouride paste for myself?

>> No.342231

i use a metal scribe , but i was considering buying some proper scrapers on ebay.

>> No.342232
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342232

I will watch this thread for the lulz

>> No.342307

>>342230
the pick things are called 'dental explorers'.
Cheap ones on amazon will cost $5 for a set of 5 picks. Good ones will cost ~$10 each. The good ones are made of stronger steel and are ground more-pointed. There is also tartar scrapers for pets that can be used.

,,,,,,hnowever,,,,,,,

you are more likely to damage your teeth by scraping them yourself though. You won't be able to see all the spots someone else doing it can. Dentists can tell you stories of neurotic people who tried to "scrape their teeth clean daily" and ended up with no teeth at all in a few years and dentures instead. (which I suppose dentures would be easy to clean yourself and would fairly end most of your dental problems,,,,,,, but I dont think that's what you wanted here)

>> No.342337
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342337

Unless you actually know exactly what you're doing, don't try to be your own dentist. The risk of damaging your teeth is quite high if you misuse the tools. Dentists have college degrees for a reason.

The best way to avoid dental bills it to take good care of your teeth. Just Google "How to care for your teeth" and you'll get plenty of advice.

But for a rundown:

-Flossing is more important than brushing (but you still need to brush).
-Your gums are more prone to damage than your teeth.
-Rinsing is important (and there are effective DIY recipes for mouthwash)
-There's a right way to brush/floss/rinse and a wrong way. Google it.
-Don't brush right after a meal because your enamel has been softened due to the food's acidity. Brushing can damage your enamel in this case

Oh and don't smoke ( ._.)

>> No.342346

>>342230
1: go to dentist, get xrays, cleaning, examination, and get all cavities filled and other dental work all done
2: STOP EATING SUGARY FOODS AND STOP DRINKING ANYTHING THAT ISN'T WATER
3: Brush your teeth after every meal.
4: Floss at least once a day.
5: Go to dentist once every 6 months for 2 years for an examination.

This is how you should do it. 1 is because you shouldn't do it yourself. 2-4 are for prevention. 5 is to make sure your prevention is working

>> No.342369

>>342230
Good on you for taking your dental hygene into your own hands!

As >>>342307 has said, the Dental 'Explorers' can be had fairly cheaply...better yet, they can be found in most hardware stores (usually as a 'hobby' item').

Hell, most woodworking catalogues list these as 'paint' or 'detail' scrapers...nudge nudge...wink wink...knowwhatimean?...

They ALL know we're doing our own teeth! I mean really...who the fuck needs Dental scrapers for paint removal?

Next up for you there Buddy...Home Surgical Techniques for $10 or LESS!!!!

Bless you Son...

>> No.342431

>Dentists have college degrees for a reason.

to maintain their medieval guild-based system so they can control the market and prices. Same deal with doctors and lawyers. It isn't hard to set a bone, bullshit in court, or shove fluoride down a child's throat. But if we didn't have a guild system, doctors, lawyers, and dentists wouldn't get to be the upper middle class gods they are now when they use to be peasant level trash jobs 100 years ago.

>> No.342448

>>342431
This is what poorfags actually believe

>> No.342459

>>342431

Then why don't you go do it and change the system? Is the conspiracy the reason you're not successful?

>> No.342460

>>342431
>I am the 99%

>> No.342463

>>342431
All those jobs were high paid 100 years ago too.

>> No.342473

>>342431

All who vote for braining him with a brick say "Aye"

Aye

>> No.342487
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342487

>>342463
Street Dentists of India
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ol-RyYnTD4

hurrrrrrrrrrdurrrrrrr

>> No.342498
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342498

your an idiot. like some old motherfucker who thinks that EVERYTHINGS EXPENSIVE! guess what fuckwad? thats life. things cost money.

>> No.342503

>>342498
This is supposed to be /diy/ where the only thing that is expensive is the TIME to learn the techniques and tricks required to properly perform our variegated tasks.

>> No.342507

There is way too much /pol/b shit on /diy these days. We need a mod who actually browses this board.

>> No.342508

>>342346
I'm standing by this.

>>342431
GB2/pol/ or /x/ please

>> No.342509

>>342230
There are diy fillings you can either make or buy kits.
Probably a bit easier than scraping/polishing.

>> No.342538

>>342498
legit.

think about how much it costs to get the oil changed in your car. What if you have a big diesel pickup or a semi? It's a couple hundred bucks.

But you can't afford $80-$120 to visit a doctor because it's a conspiracy.

>> No.342540

>>342337
>Oh and don't smoke ( ._.)
sugary foods has not got much to do with it now, apparently it has been found

varous causes of dental issues-
...not brushing after every meal and flossing at least once a day
...smoking (yep)
...drinking (esp. hard liquor)
...using meth or other drugs,,,, some place did a huge study of why so many meth users have rotten teeth. along with lack of dental hygiene, meth users tend to fall asleep with their mouths open, drying out their gums - and that is the major cause of "meth teeth", not anything to do with the drug itself

...also bad genetics. badly-crooked teeth are often doomed, even if you do everything right. :|

>> No.342671

>>342431
Do you actually read the shit you type? That is the most assnine thing I have read on /DIY/ in a grip. How do you earn wages? Somehow in your pissant brain you think flipping burgers is on par with being a dentist. Dentist don't make a lot of money on cleaning teeth dumbass. Ever had an accessed tooth? I hated going to the dentist until that puppy flared up, and I would have traded my left testicle to take away the pain. It ain't I got a pick and some fluoride now pay me bitch racket. Same with drs, get really sick and see if its a conspiracy a good doc is worth his weight in gold. Or get accused of something u didn't do and want to continue being free or at least have your side heard a good lawyer is a nice thing to have a round spinningnhismweb of bs and deceit. What's pathetic piece of shit u are.

>> No.342808

Where there is no dentist.
http://modernsurvivalonline.com/Files/medical/wtndentist_2010_Web_Full_Book.pdf

>>342671
>pissant brain
>accessed tooth

>> No.342830

Perhaps, instead of drilling a hole in your own head, you should look into medical tourism.

>inb4 buyfag
>inb4 >>>/trv/

>> No.342841

here's a quick tip, most schools that have a dental hygiene program will do cleaning for dick all. it's a way for the students to practice their skills on a live person and not a human analog.

pros: save cheddar
cons: get gum raped by a GED student

>> No.342875

>>342671
While I don't agree with the conspiracy fag, I will say that you should always, ALWAYS check the dentist and doctors reputation.
The last dentist I saw was an insurance sucker. He'd draw out any procedure as long as possible, and use the most costly materials, to scam as much money as he could out of insurance.

There are scumbags in any profession, and if you can avoid them, you should.

>> No.342954

Hydrogen peroxide and baking soda.

I had a criminal dentist while I was growing up. I was under age so I didn't have the rights to control the destiny of my own mouth.

Every time I went to see him he was all like oh durr hurr I found a cavity but luckily we caught it just in time. I hated the procedures so much that I brushed and flossed religiously. And yet every time he 'found' another cavity.

He was later arrested for selling shares in a gold mine in South America that didn't exist.

Later I saw a expose on 60 minutes where a dentist got kicked out of the American Dental Association for talking about Baking Soda and Hydrogen Peroxide. I started doing that on a periodic basis and have never had a problem.

Well other than one of my back molars breaking off and exposing the lead filling that piece of shit put in my mouth when I was fifteen.

If we lived in a just world more than half of the doctors, dentists and psychiatrists would be doing hard time busting rocks.

>> No.342956

>>342487
>>342487
>>342487
>>342487

Ironic how many Americans go to Mexico now to get decent dental work done.

>> No.342967

Theres a reason dentists and doctors have to go through years of education

>> No.342993

>>342967

Because of the guild system which forces them to go into debt so they will feel justified when they over charge their customers for a simple procedure they learned on day 1 of their 10 year education and internship.

I'm not a conspiracy theorist, you all can /diy/ your own broken bones or treat simple aligments. You can look up medication and buy the vetranry version which is exactly the same as the human version but cheaper because there isn't a powerful veternary lobby.

The fuck is wrong with you people, I make a simple comment and 10 people jump on my nuts like I'm talking about aliens or angels. You same people will flip the fuck out when monsanto or tyson tries to impose their bullshit regulations onto farmers but you happily accept the same nonsense from the bar association or american dential association. Those are the same kind of monopolistic guilds. 20 years from now your children are going to call you tin foil hat conspriacyfags when you tell them to go plant some heirloom seeds, because they will have grown up in a world of standardized regulation and not know that it use to be possible to grow your own food.

I think it's cute how the culture of this image board takes the tin foil hat shaming an extra step to associate it with /pol/ and /b/, basically trying to silence my view by subtly accusing me of racism or pedophilia since we "all know" that /b/ is full of child porn (its not) and /pol/ is full of white nationalists (its not).

>> No.342996

>>342954
I attest to this. As a highschooler I had a dentist that found a cavity every time I went in, and ended up drilling out my entire mouth and replacing it with amalgam fillings. Came back to my good dentist that's a family friend, all of the amalgam fillings started to fail and had to get all of those replaced. Now my teeth are fucked up beyond all hope. I will probably need to have them replaced in 10 more years

>> No.343087

I'll be nice.

If you are really desperate for dental care, google dental schools in your area. They all have clinics that you can go to for cleanings/other procedures.

>> No.343093

>>342993
>You can look up medication and buy the vetranry version which is exactly the same as the human version but cheaper because there isn't a powerful veternary lobby.
If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go ahead and ignore anyone who tells me veterinary medication is the same as human medication, especially when they cant even spell 'veterinary'.

>> No.343095

>>342996
OH MY GOD, are you me? My whole life has been "well you have soft teeth so DRILL BABY DRILL" I hate my metal mouth :(

>> No.343096

>>342538

No, he can't afford ~$100 to sit for half an hour, be handled by the doctors assistant, and see the doctor for a few minutes who then recommends something like "rest" or who allows you to purchase some pills. Anything not that simple jumps to $1000+ very quickly.

>> No.343113

>>342996
>>343095
>amalgam

Get all gold stuff when you get things replaced for fuck sake.

>> No.343114

>>343096
Imagine how much it will cost when he fucks it up by trying to diy his teeth and ends up with an infection and has to have part of his jaw or face bone removed 10 years later because of it.

>> No.343138

>>343113
The family friend dentist has already replaced everything with gold/composite.

I was so happy when I went in for a cleaning and actually hear ONLY 1 cavity, 0 is a godsend

>> No.343149

>>343087
I've tried this firsthand and I really recommend it. Prices are a quarter to one half what you would pay at a normal dentist. The dentists actually know what they are doing, and they do everything really thoroughly and carefully because they are constantly being checked and graded by the dental school profs (who have achieved god-tier skills after so many years).

The only downsides are 1) appointments take a long time, getting two cavities filled might take 3 hours instead of the 30 minutes for the strip-mall dentists, and 2) if your teeth are already pretty good they probably won't take on your treatment.

>> No.343185

hey op write on mazonspls@gmail and i will tell you a toothpaste recipe that will make your teeth stop having cavities

>> No.343187

>>343138
Nice

>> No.343189

>>343185
Just post it here. That is what this board is all about. This isn't /x/.

>> No.343217

>>343189
Hes afraid he'll get called out on his quack cure bullshit.

>> No.343218

>>343185

i call your bullshit. and how do you prove this assertion of yours? 'i havent had a cavity in X yrs/months' well neither have i (like 10 yrs) and i dont use your stuff. so how do you test your lameass assertion?

>> No.343245

Watch this before yuo let anyone stick their fingers in you
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/dollars-and-dentists/

Then watch this; I don't understand this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6g3x8rNch_k
and this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnum5DAzcqk

seriously, the things people are.

>> No.343246

>>343245
are into*
i meant 'are into'

>> No.343248

Just drive across the border to Mexico every time you need a cleaning.

>> No.343252

Dentists are just people who couldn't get into med school

they're also fucking horrible people and terrible at their only job

oral surgeons are far superior for any kind of dental work

>> No.343276

>>342230
You're either trolling, or you're a danger to yourself and should not be allowed to live without supervision.

If, on the miniscule chance you're serious: You can't do this, it's not practical, it's not safe, and nobody will teach you to do this. Give it up, pay like the rest of us do, and forget about it.

>> No.343688

surprise no one has said for him to look up the book "when there is no dentist"

>> No.344231

>>343688
The actual title is Where There is No Dentist by the Hesperian Foundation.
It's available from as a free download from their website, along with Where There is No Doctor and several other health manuals meant for work in marginalized and impoverished communities.
The problem is OP is not from one of those communities nor is he in and emergency. Any sort of DIY healthcare should be for emergency situations only.
OP, your best bet is to find a dental college and set up an appointment with the student training clinic. That is usually the cheapest way to go for someone who doesn't have insurance but doesn't qualify for state aid. Check to make sure you don't qualify for state aid.

>> No.344241

Brush and floss regularly. Try to limit sweets and soda.

Just do that and you've eliminated a huge chunk of dental costs.

I'm a poor fag and took about 10 + years between visits last time. After I was able to go back in again I was terrified my entire mouth would have to be redone. I essentially mouthwashed all the time, brushed once in awhile, didn't floss, so yeah I thought I was done for.

Turns out I just had 1 small cavity and they had to put a crown on another due to the previous dentist doing a shitty job on an old filling. Also they got white filling stuff now so I'm thinking of having them redo my old fillings in white. In all I got away really damn good.