Written by: Nadia Niazi
Research released today by dental aligner brand Invisalign suggests Brits should ditch the summer diet plan and invest in a ‘smile’ plan. The National Smile Month sponsor discovered it’s not wobbly body parts gnawing at a quarter of the nation’s confidence, but their crooked smiles – resoundingly beating concerns about bottoms, legs, hair and chests!
Summer romance
And if it’s romance you’re looking for this summer a cracking smile could be the secret to success, as research discovered that when it comes to attraction three quarters of Brits rated a person’s smile as important when first considering going on a date with them. Crooked teeth would put 26% of people off dating someone, a much bigger turnoff than wrinkles and 50% of people surveyed believe that straight teeth reflect how much pride you take in your overall personal hygiene.
Faking it on a date is also a big no-no, with genuine smiles (58%) rated as the top flirty signal we look out for to tell if someone’s interested in us, versus eye contact, sparking up a conversation or physical contact.
Personality and having a good sense of humour also rated highly in the attraction charts.
Getting ahead at work
Lack of confidence in our smiles could also be holding us back in our career, with 90% of Brits rating a sense of humour important to making human connection with colleagues – and its men that feel most comfortable instigating humour in the workplace (34%), whereas women tend to feel more comfortable using humorous ice breakers in their social lives (31%).
The survey also discovered that people with straight teeth and a great smile are seen as more successful (32%), wealthier (23%) and more likely to get a job (27%) than those with crooked teeth and a bad smile – suggesting perception is everything!
READ THE FULL STORY: Forget Wobbly Bits – What Brits Are Really Scared Of Flashing This Summer Is Their Smile!
Oral Health Foundation
The Oral Health Foundation is a charity that works to improve oral health by providing education, advice, and support to millions of people every year, changing lives for the better. Our mission is to support others in achieving a healthier life through better oral health. Our vision is to live in a world where everybody has a healthy mouth and is free of dental disease. Poor oral health can have a harmful and devastating effect on a person’s life – both for their physical health and mental wellbeing. We are determined to help more people achieve good oral health and have a better quality of life. Sadly, oral disease remains common, across the life course. We are taking the challenge to reduce the harm caused by poor oral health and the responsibility to create a healthier future for everybody. We do this because we believe that everybody deserves to have good oral health. To make sure this happens, by 2024, we will:
-
• Work towards decreasing the prevalence of oral disease across communities.
• Increase the number of people accessing our help and information services.
• Diversify our range of resources to reach more communities.
• Successfully campaign for policies which help people achieve healthier lives.
• Generate new and nurture existing income streams that enable us to deliver our charitable objectives.
-
• Running awareness campaigns like National Smile Month and Mouth Cancer Action Month.
• Giving anybody who needs it direct support through our Dental Helpline.
• Influencing policy on subjects like dental access, sugar, and tobacco.
• Providing consumer advice on oral health care products and working alongside manufacturers to make sure products do what they claim to do.
• Creating resources and information that communicates positive oral health messages.
• Working alongside others who share our passion for health and wellbeing.
Join with Google
Join with Facebook