UK Dentists Warn People Against Viral "Turkey Teeth" Trend. Here's Why

A dental trend known as “Turkey teeth” that involves travelling abroad to get cut-price treatment is leaving hundreds of Britishers with serious complications. 

According to the BBC, the trend, made popular by English media personality Katie Price and ITV's Love Islands Jack Fincham, involves filing the teeth to pegs and then replacing them with crowns or veneers. Patients can choose the shape, material and colour of these caps.  The procedure is viral on TikTok where the hashtag “Turkey Teeth” has reached more than 130 million views. 

However, UK dentists have warned that the treatment can leave patients with huge medical bills and serious dental complications. 

As per the outlet, 48-year-old Lisa Martyn last year flew to Turkey for 26 veneers, hoping to achieve a perfect smile for her son's wedding. However, months later she discovered that she had actually been given crowns - which involves 60 to 70 per cent of the natural tooth being filed down before a tooth cap is glued on top. 

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10 months on, Ms Martyn from Ireland is now plagued by ongoing nerve sensitivity and excruciating pain. She told the outlet that she lost more than 12 kgs as she is unable to eat properly. She also spent months relying on painkillers. 

The 48-year-old said that her pain culminated in infection and abscess, which nearly paralysed half of her face. Now, the UK dentists have told her that the only long-term treatment available is implants or dentures. 

"Financially it's going to cripple me, but that's just the price I have to pay after going to Turkey and filing all my teeth down," she told the BBC. 

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Around 600 dentists in the United Kingdom said that they had treated both patients with crown complications and seen patients who visited Turkey for their dental treatment. 

“Sadly, many UK dentists are now picking up the pieces when things go wrong. We strongly advise people considering this to check a dentist's qualifications and experience and whether they are insured if things go wrong,” Eddie Crouch, chairman of the British Dental Association (BDA) warned.