One in ten Italians does not make adequate use of dental care. The reasons are different, but the main defendant is the high cost of treatment, in particular for implant surgery. It is the last figure Eurostat survey which places Italy among the lowest positions in the ranking, with 11.6% of the population with unmet needs for dental care, immediately after Germany, the United Kingdom, France and the Netherlands.
The same figures are not very encouraging even from the last ISTAT report dating back to a few years ago: the number of citizens who turned to the dentist or orthodontist during the year was 37.9% in 2013, from 39.3% of 2005.
It also decreases the number of treatments carried out: the people who underwent only one type of treatment in the year are 70.7% (49.3% in 2005).
Are we sure that it is only the economic aspect that keeps us away from dental care?
Probably the economic discourse is definitely an alibi behind which fear or neglect is hidden, indeed, going into the analysis, not taking care of your teeth over time and with constancy can be the cause of very serious pathologies that will need to be treated later of much more sustained economic investments.
A simple toothache that is neglected over time can prove to be very risky for our health and for our own life when the infection is not curbed by any specific therapy and lasts for days.
Prevention and periodic check-ups allow the dentist to promptly diagnose any problems with our teeth and gradually intervene with significant savings for our pockets. A dental intervention on complex cases, generated by complications of common pathologies such as caries or gingivitis, has a much higher cost, for example, than a dental hygiene intervention that would help prevent them.
There are mild symptoms, such as bleeding gums, which if ignored can worsen to the point of causing tooth loss, in fact it is often a wake-up call for the diagnosis of periodontitis whose treatment would be much more complicated and expensive.
All of us should understand that not making a check-up at the dentist means hiding the dust under the carpet, that not seeing a problem does not mean solving it but only neglecting it and making it bigger. Among other things, prevention has a negligible cost (in economic and stress terms) compared to treatment.
A healthy mouth is the first step to feeling good about yourself and others. Taking care of it is important not only for an aesthetic but above all a functional reason. Better not to run into the unfortunately common mistake of relegating dental care only in cases of extreme need. Constant and continuous checks will be repaid over time with savings and well-being.
