Fanglike Teeth: Japan's Wildly Popular Beauty Craze

geminitiger

Hidden Dragon
Oct 31, 2007
76
22
Japan's beauty trend, dubbed "tseuke-yaeba," has reached a fever pitch, with young women paying hundreds for snaggleteeth.

The procedure first made headlines in 2011, but it has grown in popularity since then, even spawning a Japanese pop girl group whose members sport the snaggletooth look. The girl group, TYB48 or "Tseuke-Yaeba 48," was created by the Taro Masuoka—the very same dentist who pioneered the procedure.

"A lot of my patients are fashion-conscious and very cute. I wanted to find some way to take advantage of this, so I formed TYB48," Masuoka, of Tokyo's Pure Cure dental salon, told Japan Today.

The group whose debut album titled "Mind If I Bite?" dropped last April, turned the child-like vampire mouth into a bona-fide phenomenon. But they're far from Japan's first famous females with mangled mouths. See the smiles on the country's popular news anchor Mika Sugisaki and Japan's crown princess Masako.

The trend may seems out of step with American dentistry, but in Japan—where fashion trends often take their cue from child-like physical attributes—it's a thing of beauty. Masuoka claims the snaggletooth look gives his patients an "impish beauty" that is considered "endearingly attractive" to men. He's even reportedly offered middle school and high-school aged patients a half-price discount on the procedure if they bring identification. (The procedure, which can be temporary or permanent, involves cementing exaggerated veneers onto each canine tooth.You can check out how it's done with this helpful video from Tokyo's Dental Care Salon Plasir.)

Roland Kelts, author of the book Japan America, theorizes the rise of the "impish" mouth may have a psychological link. "The 'girl next door' look of accessibility and plainness is especially popular in Japan right now partly, I think, because Japanese men feel so weak in the face of a stagnant economy and fast-shifting gender roles," Kelts told Yahoo! Shine. "Marriage and birth rates in Japan are at historic lows. A too-perfect set of teeth, or anything else, can be intimidating when your role in society is imperiled."

Shifting gender roles and a growing insecurity of men in the workplace? Sounds familiar. If that's partly behind the snaggletooth trend in Japan, could twisted dental implants make their way to the United States any time soon? Gain popularity in US? No!" Dr. Jacqueline Fulop Goodling, a New York-based orthodontist, tells Shine. "Americans have spent billions of dollars educating ourselves on the effects of good oral hygiene... We care about the way our teeth look but we care more about if they are healthy."

Dr. Michael Sinkin, a Manhattan dentist, agrees that it's a cultural difference that has little chance of translating overseas. "When someone goes for cosmetic dentistry, some people want something perfect—'chiclet teeth.' Other people want a natural look. Culturally, that can vary. It's almost like a fashion statement," he told Shine. "I had a Japanese patient once who came in for some work and she was unhappy with the result, because she felt they looked too American, too perfect."

And, according to Dr. Joseph Banker, a cosmetic dentist from Creative Dental Care, the health risks just aren't worth it. "Although the procedure may seem non-invasive, the underlying teeth can be damaged in several ways. The additional length may cause stress on the teeth and can increase the risk of a tooth fracture." Messing with front canines in particular can lead to jaw problems, tooth decay and bacteria build-up, he says.

In the U.S., extreme cosmetic dentistry veers largely on the side of symmetry. "People come in and want well-aligned, perfectly white teeth with beautiful digital contours; they want a beautiful smile, beautiful facial aesthetics," Dr. Mark Yanosky, an orthodontist in Birmingham, Alabama, told the L.A. Times last year. It's become more than just straight teeth—he calls the approach "smile aesthetics."

According to a 2012 study by the University of Texas, 40% of people said they wouldn't date a person with crooked teeth, and 73% said that people with straight teeth are trustworthier.

But "trustworthy" doesn't always account for sex appeal. Consider some of our own snaggle-tooth trendsetters: actresses like Kirsten Dunst, Anna Paquin and the vampire-hunks of Twilight. Uneven front teeth may also account for some music fans in the states. "Gotye has made me realize that I have a crush on crooked teeth," wrote one XOJane blogger. "Those chompers seriously give me shivers of pleasure."

We can skip the dental work—who needs to pay for bad teeth when you've already got them? But maybe Japan's tseuke-yaeba movement will encourage us to embrace our natural selves, snaggletooth and all.

source: http://shine.yahoo.com/beauty/japanese-snaggletooth-craze-spawns-dental-procedures-girl-group-194500258.html
 

caneta

New Member
Jul 31, 2009
24
1
This is the weirdest trend I've ever heard :casual:
 
Aug 11, 2012
48
25
Not down with this trend. Before I even read the article I was thinking , "that seems irresponsible of those dentists." Seems like that's about right (plus it looks rickdickulous):

And, according to Dr. Joseph Banker, a cosmetic dentist from Creative Dental Care, the health risks just aren't worth it. "Although the procedure may seem non-invasive, the underlying teeth can be damaged in several ways. The additional length may cause stress on the teeth and can increase the risk of a tooth fracture." Messing with front canines in particular can lead to jaw problems, tooth decay and bacteria build-up, he says.

TBH, I don't care much about teeth and think spending thousands on cosmetic straightening is also silly. But at least it won't fuck your shit up. Also, totally knew all Japanese are lolicons. Also from that article, "...in Japan—where fashion trends often take their cue from child-like physical attributes." You know that the national age of consent is 13? In North America you need to go all the way to Mexico for sex with kids, and even being 1 year less than Japan doesn't make up for the fact that you would be in Mexico (note: 12 is youngest age for countries that have age of consent laws that give a specific age). Also, owning CP without intent to distribute is legal. I don't even think Mexico allows that.
 

otrora

Member
Jul 15, 2012
85
21
The first thing that came to my mind when i reading this is:

[youtube]ysRlTrkhJyg[/youtube]
 

camlost245

Swollen Member
Mar 1, 2009
59
36
You know that the national age of consent is 13?

National age of consent is 13, but each prefecture can set its own age of consent and they vary throughout the country from 13 to 18.

So make sure you do your research before you check in to that love hotel.

Oh and I guess to stay on topic, I think yaeba is cute; my girlfriend disagrees. Oh well, at least she's flat-chested.
 
Aug 11, 2012
48
25
National age of consent is 13, but each prefecture can set its own age of consent and they vary throughout the country from 13 to 18.

So make sure you do your research before you check in to that love hotel.

Oh and I guess to stay on topic, I think yaeba is cute; my girlfriend disagrees. Oh well, at least she's flat-chested.

That would be why I specified national, but that is a good warning anyways I suppose. Also, your girlfriend is right and this trend is still stupid. That is to say paying for it is stupid, I could care less if they're natural. Really the only preference I have in teeth is brushed over not brushed. Still, I fully approve of the idea of "fashion trends often [taking] their cue from child-like physical attributes," and commend you for your appreciation of flat chests.