The dance between cosmetics and functionality has been playing out within dentistry over the last couple of decades. Previously dentists were mainly interested in setting your teeth right for your bite and its structural capabilities. The ongoing cultural obsession with appearance and looking at one’s image online has raised the smile makeover to supreme status of late, however. Celebrities are taking this a step further by turning teeth into carriers for ornaments and jewellery. North West’s diamond grills are not quite the case of Kanye “Ye” West’s daughter out-sparkling him: “Look Daddy, dis bling is bigger than yours, LFG,” and more a case of “Daughter, I can see my grills reflected in yours”.

Grills No Longer Limited To Burgers In America

What are our teeth and gums for? Eating springs to mind, but does this have to be an exclusive role or is there room for bling to be paraded across one’s grills? The West family are pushing the boundaries further in this regard. Kanye West began the process with the help of his celebrity dentist – who now sees himself as more artist than technician. The American love of money feeds this dynamic with Dr Thomas Connelly charging massive bucks for the procedure, which fitted the bejewelled grills to Kanye West’s teeth. Some might see this as further evidence for the decay of civilisation but opinions are varied on this matter.

Bling By North & Kanye West Changing the Face Of Cosmetic Dentistry

One remembers the Nazis digging the gold out of the teeth of their Jewish victims of the gas chambers and Einsatzgruppen firing squads. Will the West family and those that follow this fashion trend be subject to similar treatment by gold diggers in the cemeteries of America in the late 21C? The gold price is at record levels at the moment within our high inflationary economies across the western world. Precious metals and gem stones are always worth plenty and perennially remain the targets of nefarious individuals. Opening your mouth to smile or grimace may become an unwanted invitation for bad men and women when adorned with bejewelled teeth. Will looking scary be enough to ward off unwanted overtures from desperate men and women and individuals of a non-binary nature? Only time will tell.

Will Tooth Adornments & Dental Bling Become Culturally Popular?

Fashion trends come and go, including bodily fashions. We have seen the plethora of tattoos displayed upon an entire generation of western youth and young adults. Piercings have accompanied this body art for many of its proponents. The resurrection of tribal aesthetics from our ancient past has landed in the modern era. Will teeth bling and metallic grills over fixed prosthodontics become a new big thing or will the excessive price tag render it the exclusive domain of very rich celebrities? Of course, if everyone starts getting them the allure will wane for those wishing to appear extremely special. Many young folk long to be different and unique looking whilst simultaneously belonging to their generational group. Will these metallic teeth become the cutting edge of fashion in 2024 and beyond?

Society In Need Of A Moral Compass

What does it say about a celebrity world where 10 year olds are getting diamonds affixed to their teeth? Could this be seen as overreach in a materialistic culture lacking any real spirituality or moral centre? Daddy “Ye” is spending $850,000 on shiny new metallic grills over his teeth, and North, not wanting to be left out. “What about me, it isn’t fair I want my oral bling share!!!” What are we seeing here in America – the so called land of the free? Should we be concerned about the the USA’s tens of millions of hungry poor folk? Would it be great if 10 year old kids wanted to help the poor rather than stick diamonds to their teeth?

American Values: The Materialistic Core

Many Aussies regard America as a very sick country, where a convicted business fraud and insurrectionist can stand for the presidency in 2024. Presidential candidates and Kanye West share a narcissistic strain the size of Manhattan. These leaders of ‘no shame’ and much self-aggrandisement are shining examples of what is peculiar about the USA. Their teeth maybe be whiter than white or shinier than a large kitchen knife, but the decay within is increasingly perceived as rotten to the core. Donald Trump has orange skin from prolonged fake tan usage – and Ye’s metallic grills are like a cartoon character on steroids in a horror film.

Does anyone worry about North West and whether she is being parented properly?

“North parted her lips with her fingers to reveal the sparkling stones on her lower teeth and two of her upper teeth.
North, 10, had four teeth covered entirely with diamonds while a few others were simply outlined with the rocks.
“Random,” she wrote in blue over the photo, while the slideshow of pictures on the social media platform had been captioned, “The things, my daughter makes on my phone ha ha.” “
– Page Six

Kim Kardashian is her mother. Is she worried about her daughter?

Should Dentists Be Turning The Profession Into A Circus Act?

Do dentists have a civic duty to act responsibly? Is our vocation being sullied by excessively superficial services? Will oral bling be the undoing of respect for dentists in America and around the world? How can you ask clients to floss regularly if you are party to outlandish travesties of celebrity dentistry? Will the wider public still take dentists seriously? Some dentists hold great concern for the soul of dentistry in the face of rampant teeth whitening and the growing emphasis on cosmetic dental procedures. Sticking diamonds onto the teeth of 10 year olds is, for most people, a dental bridge too far. As a profession do we need a return to family values and structural dentistry? Is oral bling poisoning the profession for us all? Maybe there should be a limit on the number of times you can include the word ‘smile’ in any promotional literature.

Do we need to rein things in and clean up the business for future generations of dentists? Health professionals cannot be milking the cow from too many angles. In the face of North West’s diamond grills, while Kanye West’s daughter now out-sparkles him, conversely this now casts a shadow over the soul of dentistry, more broadly.

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