Balance May 2018 - 59

SMILES BETTER

Nothing
tooth

xxxx xxxxx xxx
xxxx xxx xxxxx

BUT THE

O

ther than a little more love and
a little less plastic, if the world
could do with anything right now,
it's a few more smiles. However,
according to a survey by BUPA, one of the
things holding us back from smiling more
is the state of our teeth. They say nearly a
quarter of us are reluctant to flash our gnashers
because we're unhappy with the way they look,
with the fact they're not as white as they could
be cited as the top reason. Until fairly recently,
I too was one of those 'reluctant smilers', with
photos featuring my pearlies as rare as the
teeth hens are so famous for lacking.

ROOT OF THE PROBLEM
For me, there's not much difference between
a dentist's chair or an electric one. In fact,
so flooded with adrenaline is my body when
I undergo a dental procedure, I require enough
anaesthetic to fell a horse and I'm not alone.
A study in the International Dental Journal
revealed 10 million adults in the UK have some
level of dental anxiety, with an estimated six
million suffering from full-on phobia. It's a fear
that leads to issues like cavities, bad breath and
gum disease. But poor oral hygiene has also
been linked to everything from heart disease to
erectile dysfunction and a raft of other health
concerns. And that's before you consider
the social anxiety caused by a reluctance
to smile for fear of revealing a mouthful of

LEE
KYNASTON

Although a firm
believer that
real beauty comes
from the inside,
Lee sees no
harm in giving the
outside some TLC.

Snails can
have as many as
25,000 teeth, and
they are found on
their tongue. A
human has 32, a
dog 42 and a cat
just 30

A BRUSH
WI T H HIS TORY

The nylon
bristled
toothbrush
was first
developed
in 1938.
However,
others
made from
materials
including
bristles
from hogs,
horses and
badgers
existed in
China as
long ago
as the 15th
Century.

LEA D E R O F T HE P LAQ U E

1. Foreo ISSA 2
£149 (foreo.com)

Child's

play

First-class

traveller

Swede

dreams

❶
60

❷

❸

2.Oral-B Junior
Electric Toothbrush
£49.99 (oralb.co.uk)
3.Quip Electric
Toothbrush
£33 (getquip.com)

May 2018 BA LA N CE

18th Century headstones.
What I've learned is I'm not scared of
dentists, but the wrong dentist. Finding the
right one is like finding the right partner,
driving instructor or therapist - you have to
try a few before one puts you at ease. Mine,
Dr. Uchenna Okoye from London Smiling,
actually shares my fear of the dentist's chair,
which may seem contradictory but makes
her the perfect dentist for anyone in fear of
fillings.

GET YOUR TEETH INTO IT
According to the Oral Health Foundation,
there are things you can do to reduce
your anxiety. Booking an early morning
appointment means you won't spend all day
worrying (making you less likely to cancel),
while discussing procedures ahead of time
and asking questions will help demystify
them and allay any fears - something useful
if you're a bit of a control freak.
Relaxation techniques, like tensing and
relaxing muscle groups, and meditation
can help too, as can simple distraction
techniques. The other key thing is actually
looking after your teeth. It seems obvious,
but when you're less ashamed of the pearlies,
you're less likely to fear the hygienist.
The solution lies in finding the right
dentist for you - preferably one with a
decent sense of humour, because laughing is
the best cure for fear: better than hypnosis,
better than behavioural therapy, better
than Bach flower remedies. That's something
to genuinely smile about. B

MAIN IMAGE: STOCKSY

Ten million
people fear
the dentist.
Here's how
to avoid
being one
of them



Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Balance May 2018

Balance May 2018 - 1
Balance May 2018 - 2
Balance May 2018 - 3
Balance May 2018 - 4
Balance May 2018 - 5
Balance May 2018 - 6
Balance May 2018 - 7
Balance May 2018 - 8
Balance May 2018 - 9
Balance May 2018 - 10
Balance May 2018 - 11
Balance May 2018 - 12
Balance May 2018 - 13
Balance May 2018 - 13
Balance May 2018 - 14
Balance May 2018 - 15
Balance May 2018 - 16
Balance May 2018 - 17
Balance May 2018 - 18
Balance May 2018 - 19
Balance May 2018 - 20
Balance May 2018 - 21
Balance May 2018 - 22
Balance May 2018 - 23
Balance May 2018 - 24
Balance May 2018 - 25
Balance May 2018 - 26
Balance May 2018 - 27
Balance May 2018 - 28
Balance May 2018 - 29
Balance May 2018 - 30
Balance May 2018 - 31
Balance May 2018 - 32
Balance May 2018 - 33
Balance May 2018 - 34
Balance May 2018 - 35
Balance May 2018 - 36
Balance May 2018 - 37
Balance May 2018 - 38
Balance May 2018 - 39
Balance May 2018 - 40
Balance May 2018 - 41
Balance May 2018 - 42
Balance May 2018 - 43
Balance May 2018 - 44
Balance May 2018 - 45
Balance May 2018 - 46
Balance May 2018 - 47
Balance May 2018 - 48
Balance May 2018 - 49
Balance May 2018 - 50
Balance May 2018 - 51
Balance May 2018 - 52
Balance May 2018 - 53
Balance May 2018 - 54
Balance May 2018 - 55
Balance May 2018 - 56
Balance May 2018 - 57
Balance May 2018 - 58
Balance May 2018 - 59
Balance May 2018 - 60
Balance May 2018 - 61
Balance May 2018 - 62
Balance May 2018 - 63
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BALANCE_MARCH_2020
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BALANCE_FEBRUARY_2020
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/balancejanuary2020
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BALANCE_DECEMBER_2019
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BALANCE_NOVEMBER_19
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BALANCE_OCTOBER_2019
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/balanceseptember2019
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/balancejuly2019
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/Balance_June_2019
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/balancemay2019
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/balance_april_2019
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceMarch19
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceFebruary19
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceJanuary2019
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceDecember2018
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceNovember2018
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceOctober2018
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceSeptember2018
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceAugust2018
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceJuly2018
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceJune2018
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceMay2018
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceApril2018
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceMarchIssue2018
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceFebruary18
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceJanIssue2018
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/balancedecember2017
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/balancenovember2017
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceOctober2017
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceSeptIssue2017
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceJulyIssue2017
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceJuneIssue2017
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceMayIssue2017
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceAprilIssue2017
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceMarchIssue17
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceFebruaryIssue2017
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceJanuaryIssue2017
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceDecember2016
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceNovember2016
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceOctober2016
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceSeptember2016
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceJuly2016
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceJune2016
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceMay2016
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceLaunchEditionApril2016
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/Balance2016
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/BalanceNov
http://europe.nxtbook.com/emp/Balance/Balance
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com