Dr. Danial Kalantari, the primary dentist at Smiles on Bristol Dentistry, located in Santa Ana, California, just a few minutes away from the John Wayne Airport, warns of a new viral trend sweeping across the internet.  This new trend is so-called DIY or “do-it-yourself” dentistry, where people on YouTube, often teenagers, recommend at-home dental procedures to help people avoid the potentially high-cost of professional dental care.  Generally aimed in helping straighten the teeth, these at-home procedures use rubber bands, wires, and even paper clips to try to realign teeth.

While these procedures may seem to adequately mimic the work of professional orthodontics, they are actually applying dangerous pressure to the teeth which can lead to nerve damage and the death of the tooth.  Rubber bands used around the teeth can also slip dangerously far into the gums requiring surgery to remove.  The potential damage to the teeth and gums can require surgery far more expensive than the procedures DIY dentists were looking to avoid in the first place.  Beyond that, the damage could be permanent making an aesthetic issue now a lifelong health concern.