WE'RE all aware of the dangers of smoking. But when it’s laid bare in front of our eyes, it never fails to shock.
A doctor has shown just how much damage the habit can have on teeth.
Showing the insides of a patient’s mouth, Dr Maryam Hadian said “this is what ‘smoker teeth’ look like”.
The video, posted to TikTok, shows dark brown staining across each tooth, with the back of the front bottom two almost completely covered.
Several teeth are blackened with decay.
And there appears to be a small growth under the tongue, which was not described by Dr Hadian, based at Le Chic Dentist in Los Angeles.
She got to work scrubbing the teeth with a special tool, showing a final product of visibly cleaner – but not whiter – teeth.
Many comments on the video, which has half a million likes, claim that smoking does not cause discolouration – lack of teeth brushing does.
But it is well known that nicotine and tar in tobacco can make the teeth yellow in a very short time, and heavy smokers may see their teeth go brown or grey after years of cigarettes.
Brushing teeth at least twice a day may prevent staining. But it’s unlikely someone will brush their teeth every time they have a cigarette.
It’s not just the teeth at risk, as smoking can lead to gum disease.
Smokers are twice at risk of gum disease compared to nonsmokers, according to the US health agency CDC.
People who smoke are more likely to produce bacterial plaque which causes the infection, Dental Health says.
It adds: “The gums are affected because smoking causes a lack of oxygen in the bloodstream, so the infected gums don't heal. Smoking causes people to have more dental plaque and causes gum disease to get worse more quickly than in non-smokers.”
Gum disease in itself can have consequences, being the leading cause of tooth loss and related to heart disease.
Smokers are also prone to bad breath and lose their sense of smell and taste.
More seriously, smoking is a leading cause of throat/mouth cancer.
That’s before listing off the several other cancers and diseases it can cause, from stroke to lung cancer.
Every year in the UK, 96,000 people will die from diseases caused by smoking.
But it can feel impossible to kick the habit.
It's not; Try this doctor's hack to beat nicotine cravings for good, or this five-step plan.
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