Teeth: The Story Of Beauty, Inequality, And The Struggle For Oral Health In America
by Mary Otto
Buy on Amazon'Show me your teeth', the great naturalist George Cuvier is credited with saying, 'and I will tell you who you are'. In this shattering new work, veteran health journalist Mary Otto looks inside America's mouth, revealing unsettling truths about our unequal society. Teeth takes readers on a disturbing journey into the role teeth play in our health and our social mobility. Muckraking and paradigm-shifting, Teeth exposes for the first time the extent and meaning of our oral health crisis.
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"For many Americans, skipping trips to the dentist isn’t about forgoing pearly whites worthy of an actor’s headshot. It’s about being unable to get basic care. Almost <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/dental.htm”>20 percent of children in the U.S. have untreated cavities; the number’s higher for adults. Mary Otto, a former Washington Post reporter, doesn’t just dwell on the numbers – she makes what could have been a turgid health policy tome spark with outrage over the stories of people who have suffered, including <a href="https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=10591383”>Deamonte Driver, a 12-year-old Maryland boy who died from an infection caused by one neglected tooth."
NPR Books We Love — 2017 · apps.npr.org