How many times have you looked in the mirror and cursed that rotated lateral incisor, worn canine or discolored and stained central incisor? How many times have you sat in the dental hygiene chair looking at promotional pictures of glamorous white teeth and sexy smiles and wondered if that could be you? Ready to pull the trigger and feel better about yourself? Ready to join the dentate elite?

If you're on the edge but can't muster the courage to make that call, fear not. The solution lies in your six month re-care visit. Invariably, sometime during the scraping and polishing of your dentition, in between the chit chat and local gossip shared between you and your hygienist, the subject will come up. The door will open; a seemingly innocent invitation into the world beyond natural teeth. You're beckoned with a smile, a vision of health and beauty and the promise of deep inner satisfaction. These are powerful forces. 

There is no harm walking through that door as long as you bring your good sense of objectivity with you. My advice? Don't go food shopping on an empty stomach, don't drink and drive and certainly don't sign off on a cosmetic tooth makeover before you leave the dental office.

A bountiful collection of expletives describing our politicians, bankers and mortgage lenders circulates indiscriminately. Few people have survived the current economic environment unscathed or unblemished. Fortunately, as bad as it out there, a glass half-full and a cloud with a silver lining embellishes many of us. Amazingly, the adaptability of our species has rarely been more evident than in these uncertain times. As bank accounts shrink, stock portfolios implode and retirement plans are set aside an incredible survival mechanism has kicked into gear. During times of crisis, with the efficiency of a laser guided missile, the human mind is capable of filtering its vast cache of perceived necessities into a manageable basket of priorities. We tend to draw upon inner strength, seek the refuge of human interaction and become less reliant on materialistic infusions to satisfy our boredom. Could it be that many of us have subconsciously yearned for this?

Within our American urban sanctuaries not a day goes by without Madison Avenue bombardments. A swanky slathering of opulence smothers us. Handbags, shoes, jewelry, performance automobiles, plastic surgery enhancements and yes, porcelain laminate veneers abound. I've often imagined what the mastermind behind the creation of all these extravagances was like. A larger than life individual, perceptually light years ahead of others and likely responsible for creating necessity, fear and entitlement out of thin air. Or was he just a meager man masked behind a curtain of advertising dollars? The year was 1939. The man was Frank Morgan aka "The Wizard of Oz". I ask myself was the Wizard the prototype of the Madison Avenue executive and are today's tumultuous times a modern day reenactment of Dorothy's adventure into Oz and eventual return to her grass roots in Kansas? We need to ask ourselves are we better off in Kansas or Oz?

Friday, January 23, 2009 Allergen, Inc. formally introduced Latisse http://www.latisse.com, the first FDA approved formulation of bimatoprost for eyelash enhancement. Prior to its introduction the drug formula was solely marketed under the name Lumigan to treat eye conditions stemming from glaucoma. According to Allergan the drug could generate up to $500 million in annual sales. CNBC covered the story and subsequently debated the relevance of drugs such as Latisse given the fragile economy, need for health care reform and history of drugs thought to be safe such as Vioxx and Celebrex. The pro argument for drugs such as Latisse was that profits can be channelled back into their parent companies and used to subsidize R & D for other life sustaining drugs. In reality, the debate is a vortex for which every aspect of health care, finance, marketing and politics channels into. Dental makeovers are a spoke in the wheel of this debate.

Next. Cosmetic Dental Makeovers 2. Pros and Cons.