Why You DO NOT Want to Use Smile Direct Club

Dr. Baptiste • July 10, 2020

No one ever really enjoys hearing that they are exactly the same as everyone else, because honestly, no one is EXACTLY alike the next person. Luckily, your teeth have the same idea. Everything that is going on inside your mouth is uniquely your own. Unfortunately, for programs such as Smiles Direct Club, they do not care that your mouth is different.

Dentists and orthodontics take great pride in caring for their patient’s needs. It cannot be stressed enough that every person’s case is diverse and unlike the next patient that relaxes in the dentist’s chair, and therefore each patient receives a through examine to positively assess their treatment plan. Orthodontics and dentists can all agree that their field is much more complicated than most realize.

With new technology developing in the last several years in orthodontics, clear aligners are much more popular over traditional metal braces. Some companies have caught on to this fact and have profited from it. Programs such as Smiles Direct Club are more focused on their marketing advances than actual dentistry. Their big influences stress on social media and word of mouth that they make having a straight, pretty smile affordable for those who cannot afford traditional orthodontic treatments. Most insurance companies do not cover the cost of braces and a payment plan that only covers the materials and not having office visits, since there are no dentists in a Smile Shop (Smiles Direct Club physical storefronts) is appealing to most patients. Using flashy marketing to draw in prospective new patients, you are shown the ease of having “custom” aligners sent to your home every few weeks, and in no time you will have that beautiful smile you always dreamed of.

Many dentists have been in a vicious battle over the years with the popularity of mail-order orthodontics. That’s not to say that both cannot coexist together, but because these companies such as Smile Direct Club, are trying (and succeeding) at delivering this treatment to the masses, it hinders those patients in the long run whose cases are more severe than only a few crooked teeth.

When you arrive at a Smile Shop you are greeted by the marketing team again by branding the walls in their signature colors of purple and white. Once you are signed in, the patient is taken to a back room where an assistant takes 3D pictures of your teeth, which include all the lovely plague that may have built up since the last time you went to the dentist. A supervisor will come in and double check that all pictures have been taken. You are then told that a dentist will review the images off-site and once they give the all clear, your aligners will begin arriving in the mail for you to use.

While this all sounds simple and easy, again one must remember that no two mouths are the same. This device that Smile Shops use to take pictures of your teeth do not show what lies beneath. No x-rays that show bone growth, or undeveloped teeth. The pictures that are used to make Smile Direct aligners only show what is seen by the rest of the world, or cosmetic.

Baptiste Orthodontics takes the time to not only understand the patient’s case, but gets to know about their patients as well, including consulting with them about their treatment plan. If you are looking for an orthodontic plan tailored to you, with clear aligners, such as Invisalign in Orlando,call Baptiste Orthodontics today to schedule your visit.

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