London: Britons’ No 1 ageing fear is have to wear false teeth, according to a new survey.
Nearly half of Brits are in grave danger of having teeth that are ‘older’ than they are, due to poor diets and shameful dental habits according to new research* from Orbit CompleteTM. And yet, the nation’s biggest ageing fear is the prospect of having to wear dentures – proving that Brits really need to brush up on their ‘dental know how’ if they want to avoid their worst nightmare coming true!
Top Ageing Anxieties
Wearing dentures
41%
Dying grey hair
17%
Trimming excessive facial hair
13%
Taking supplements
7%
Using anti-wrinkle cream
7%
Wearing glasses
3%
From Thursday, you can take the test and work out your personal dental risk factor by visiting Orbit Mouth Makeover
Dent You Believe It
When we think of someone looking ‘old’, one of the first things we think of is stained, crooked and rotting teeth. As a nation, despite being scared of ending up having to ‘glue’ our teeth in each day, we’re not helping ourselves with over half of us confessing to not knowing how to clean our teeth correctly and a third never bothering to floss.
Drink your way to dental decay
Orbit Complete worked with the British Dental Health Foundation to discover other dental villains harming our teeth. Fruit smoothies and juices might be a great way to help you get your 5-a-day, but whether the 61% of Brits that drink them regularly are aware that they have a high acid content that is harmful to their teeth, is doubtful. Coffee, white wine and red wine, also guzzled by Brits on a regular basis, are also adding on the years by eroding and discolouring their teeth.
Welsh Have Oldest Teeth in U
It’s the Welsh who are in danger of being ‘long in the tooth’ before their time, with one in five coming out worst in the dental test due to lifestyle factors such as smoking and drinking fizzy drinks, but it’s the Scots who seem to be the least bothered about their dental health routine. The Southerners are ‘young gums’ with the most youthful teeth. The Northern Irish spend the most time preening their pearly whites – almost one in ten have bleached their own teeth at home with over-the-counter whitening kits.
*Study of 1100 adults aged 18+ conducted by ICM Research between 7-9th July 2008
About the Wrigley Company
The Wrigley Company is the worlds leading manufacturer of chewing and bubblegum and a major player in the confectionery industry worldwide. Some of Wrigleys most famous brands include Wrigleys Extra®, Airwaves®, Orbit Complete®, Juicy Fruit®, Wrigleys Spearmint®, Doublemint® and Hubba www.wrigley.co.uk
About the British Dental Health Foundation
The British Dental Health Foundation is an independent charity that along with its global arm, the International Dental Health Foundation, is dedicated to improving the oral health of the public by providing free and impartial dental advice, by running educational campaigns like National Smile Month and by informing and influencing the public, profession and government on issues such as mouth cancer awareness and water fluoridation. It has a 37-year track record of providing objective and unbiased advice, information and recommendations. The Foundation’s independent Dental Helpline is staffed by a team of qualified dental experts and offers free and impartial expert advice. The service is available Monday to Friday between 9am and 5pm on 0845 063 1188. For more information visit < a href="http://www.dentalhealth.org">www.dentalhealth.org
