Easy Exercises

Brace yourself

In the past, the only reason to wear dental braces was because of crooked teeth, leading to teasing and taunting by classmates. But braces are now all the rage, with young people who don�t really need them rushing to get a mouthful of metal. However, dental experts are advising people to be careful. Read the following story from the �Bangkok Post� to find out why, and then complete the crossword puzzle.

Photographs courtesy of Bangkok Post

Wearing fashionable, cosmetic braces has become the in thing among teenagers. However, this fad has also become a concern for public health officials, who will visit shopping centres where the braces are on sale for less than 100 baht each to see if they are a health hazard. The inspections follow complaints to the National Institute of Dentistry. There are fears the braces could be made of substandard metal that could endanger the wearers� oral health by exposing them to lead poisoning or rust.

TEETHING PROBLEMS

Dr Sutha Jiaramaneechotechai, director of the Dental Health Division, said only dentists are qualified to fit braces on teeth. The metal must not irritate the gums or inner cavity of the mouth.

The officials will collect samples from the market to see what the braces are made of and who made them. Sellers will be in trouble if their products cause damage to the wearers� teeth � those caught selling and fitting braces and who are not qualified dentists could be jailed as well as fined. Sources said braces are fast becoming fashion accessories among teenagers, with colours and patterns added to the metal strands to make them look attractive.

Brush with reality

Exercise

Everyone dreads going to the dentist. The thought of having someone pry open your mouth and drill holes in your teeth can be rather frightening. Work with a friend to list ways of preventing cavities and making your teeth strong and healthy.

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Exercise

Complete the crossword puzzle on the right. When you are finished, take the coloured squares and rearrange them to spell a word associated with a medical profession.

Across

1. Hard, white objects in the mouth used for biting and chewing food.

2. A hole in a tooth.

3. To clean between your teeth.

4. A substance that you put on a brush and use to clean your teeth.

Down

5.Sweet food made of sugar and/or chocolate.

6. A small brush for cleaning your teeth.

Vocabulary

crooked (adj): not in a straight line; bent or twisted
taunt (v): to try to make somebody angry or upset by saying unkind things about them, laughing at their failures, etc.
cosmetic (adj): in this use, improving only the outside appearance of something and not its basic character
fad (n): something that people are interested in for only a short period of time
hazard (n): thing that can be dangerous or cause damage
substandard (adj): below standard
endanger (v): to put somebody or something in a situation in which they could be harmed or damaged
oral (adj): connected with the mouth
rust (n): a reddish-brown substance that is formed on some metals by the action of water and air
irritate (v): to annoy somebody, especially by something you continuously do or by something that continuously happens
fine (v): in verb form, to make somebody pay money as an official punishment
source (n): a place, person or thing that you get something from
strand (n): a single thin piece of thread, wire, hair, etc.
dread (v): to be very afraid of something; to fear that something bad is going to happen
pry (v): to use force to separate something from something else

Idioms

be all the rage: to be very popular and fashionable
the in thing: something that is very fashionable, often not for a very long time