Obsessed With Taking Selfies? Dentists Have a Warning For You

Dentists have warned that an obsession with taking selfies is leading to a rise in dental dysmorphia. 

They say they are seeing an increase in the number of people wanting to correct what they wrongly believe are 'horsey' teeth. What these people don't realise is that their phone is creating a distorted photo.

The experts have said that in real life, their teeth are often perfectly fine,

Clinical director of the London Smile Clinic, Tim Bradstock-Smith said: "The problem with a selfie is that the picture is taken quite closely, so the image can be distorted.

"Teeth often look more protruding than they are in real life and appear "horse-like.

"As teeth are at the centre of the image, people are increasingly, and understandably, driven to make them look nicer.

"While these photos will undeniably exaggerate defects, they can also be misleading."

He said he has had to talk at least several patients every week out of unnecessary treatment.

Dr Bradstock-Smith said: "It's always been thought that the two front teeth look good being a little more dominant with a step in length between these and the next two.

"However if your selfies are taken too close it can be distorted and exaggerate the size of the two front teeth.

"We have seen a 30 per cent rise over five years in the number of patients sending in selfies through the website with concerns about the look of their front teeth, yet when the patients come in person, often the teeth don't look too bad at all."

To take the best selfie, either use a selfie stick to achieve that extra distance or extend your arm as far as possible.

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