Volcanic Ash

Even dentistry is being affected by the volcanic ash from the eruption underneath the Eyjafjallajokull glacier in Iceland.

My first thought was that apart from a few patients stuck abroad we would be relatively unaffected, as none of our staff have been overseas. Yesterday we had two things that made me think differently. A supplier has told us that an item we ordered is not available as it has to come from overseas, thankfully it's not urgent and we can use something alternative. Then Invisalign emailed us, they ship their aligners from the USA by air, so anyone waiting for new aligners will have to wait a little longer.

I guess the longer the air disruption goes on (and though there is a re-opening of air-space today the disruption could last a long time, especially if the volcano continues to erupt) the more things will be affected. A lot of dental and orthodontic supplies are manufactured in America. Its too easy to take things for granted without really thinking about how things get here.

Mind the Gap?

You might have noticed the Rimmel lipstick ads featuring Georgia Jagger. So have a lot of other people, but perhaps for the wrong reason. I came across a Facebook page with over 200,000 fans titled "Get the london look...na your alright sort your teeth out" (sic). What struck me, apart from the bad grammar and spelling of the title, was that so many people would bother to join such a group!

She really hasn't got bad teeth apart from a gap and that they look rather prominent. I think its pronounced because she's modelling very stark red lipstick with pale makeup and has quite large lips. Some of the comments are rather vitriolic, perhaps she likes her gap?

What it does show is that your teeth can have quite a big impact on your appearance, even one small gap. I've treated several patients with a similar problem, its pretty simple to close the gap, can be done with braces that hardly show, and can make a big difference to your appearance.

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