I know its not politically correct but I’m not a politician. Men and Women are different. I don’t ask for directions. I don’t like to talk on the phone. I don’t say, “I love you” as often as my wife would like and I ignore little pains. Guys are not as good as they should be about their own maintenance. How many women would shave their heads so they don’t have to get a haircut? I’ve seen plenty of guys do it.
Ignoring things is something men typically do more often that women, especially when it comes to their mouths.
Statistics bear this out. Most dental practices have 50% more women as patients than men.
You would think that Doctors would know better. As someone who’s known by my peers as “The Doctor’s Dentist” because of all the healthcare professionals I treat, I can tell you that’s not true. The 70/30 rule applies to them as well. More male physicians ignore their problems than females do.
I can’t stress enough how important it is to visit your dentist regularly. Why? Because there are so many problems that don’t manifest themselves until its often too late.
I’ve seen very smart people, yes, even medical Doctors come in with problems that could have been prevented or treated simply had they only come in sooner.
Dentistry has been great at preventing disease. But, it requires people to come in and be treated. And…the earlier the better.
Let’s talk about oral cancer. 37,000 new cases of Oral Cancer are diagnosed each year and over 5,000 people will die in the US this year alone. Worse is that the 5 year survival rate once it’s diagnosed is only 50%. To put this in perspective, the survival rates of women with stage 1 and 2 breast cancer is 80-96% because early detection is the key. We’re just not finding oral cancer early enough because early on, it doesn’t hurt and you can’t easily see it. You can’t do a self-mouth cancer exam.
For that alone, it’s worth visiting your dentist regularly. And, if your dentist or hygienist doesn’t do a routine cancer examination…go elsewhere.
How do you know that your dentist/hygienist is doing a cancer exam? The easiest way is to see if they ask you to stick your tongue out and look under it. There are other things involved but this should be the most obvious. If your dentist/hygienist doesn’t do this routinely….seek one who will.
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