A beautiful smile can transform anyone’s appearance, so it’s no wonder people spend a lot of money on dental procedures to enhance their pearly whites. However, as the trend grows, more and more people are limiting themselves to getting a Hollywood smile.
Now, there’s a new trend that has dental professionals worried and surprised.
For every person who doesn’t want to drop thousands of dollars on their dentist, there is someone willing to perform the service out of their home for a much cheaper price. In fact, it’s a growing trend we’re seeing on social media as veneers grow in popularity.
These people claim to be Certified Veneer Technicians, having gone through training and received a certificate that allows them to apply composite veneers to their clients’ teeth. These do-it-yourself “veneer technicians” promise better, whiter smiles with a set of veneers for a fraction of the price of a board-certified dentist. Unfortunately, these people are not professionals and the services they provide are illegal.
A woman named @spechellephases on Instagram accuses a woman named “theeveneerfairy” of being unlicensed and giving her bad veneers that left her in so much pain she nearly landed in the emergency room.
“He said it would be done [be] $3500 for services due to needing a partial. I paid half that day and on Wednesday, I came to my appointment, he assured me that he could do the work I was asking for,” he explained.
“When I first tried on my part I advised her it was too thick and needed to be shaved several times, she said she didn’t have the tool she needed for that but I could adapt to it. she trusted her judgment that this was something she should specialize in.”
Spechellephases says that hours after her procedure, she was in excruciating pain and returned to “theeveneerfairy” to have the veneers removed.
“She agreed to meet at her shop. When I got there he told me he didn’t have the right tools to take them out. It took an hour for him to drill and for me to pull them out. At one point, she advised me that I might need to go to the emergency room because she and I were afraid she was going to pull out my real teeth.”
Although she is compassionate, many of her followers believe she should know better.
“Since then, have you discovered that there is no real profession as a veneer craftsman? Veneers are filled by dentists. This was a person who said to herself, I can do this and order supplies from Amazon. He could spend a lot of time cheating on her, and he could mess up and hurt someone really bad,” read a comment below the post.
The veneer technology saga is taking social media by storm, with influencers across all platforms boasting that they are making over $5,000 a week offering dental services.
A certain influencer has gone viral after receiving his Certificate of Completion from the Technical Veneer Class. Unfortunately, his celebrations were short-lived and he was called out by dental professionals calling him a fraud.
One person in particular is Dr. Aier Davis, a dentist who has been very vocal on TikTok about illegal veneer technologies and the viral trend.
“What he’s doing is illegal,” Dr Davies said. “Friends, we have talked about this ad nauseam. Veneer technology is not real work. This certificate he has is through Canva. There is no certification board for veneer technicians.”
The influencer’s photo was reposted on X. “He’s fine and they’ll love him in prison,” the caption reading.
An Atlanta woman who claims to be a veneer craftsman was brave enough to be interviewed on TikTok and says she doesn’t fear the repercussions of her illegal activity because she’s protected by a piece of paper.
When asked if she was afraid of being sued, the woman, whose identity has not been released, said: “They can’t technically sue me because I have everyone sign a paper before they start, and basically, that protects me from any lawsuit or any such action. I got it from a friend of mine. She uses it for all her stuff, so she sent me a copy of it and I had them sign it.”
Those in the dental industry are taking to the internet to warn people about “these scammers” and are advising everyone to report anyone claiming to be a veneers technician to the American Dental Association (ADA), because it’s illegal.
“This is 100% illegal and we need to talk about it before you fall victim to spending $2,000 for a bright white smile,” TikTok user dani_bananni warned the platform. “The only people licensed in the United States are dentists. And to become a dentist you have to go to school for eight years.”
“This is so dangerous,” Dani adds. “When you start chipping away at your enamel and filing down the tooth structure, you run the risk of seriously damaging the teeth and nerves in your mouth.”
According to Cleveland Clinic, Dental veneers are a cosmetic treatment that involves thin covers that fit over your teeth. Crowns are usually made with tooth-colored composite or porcelain that hide imperfections, resulting in a better smile.
The procedure comes with some risks. It involves shaving the natural teeth so that the veneers fit properly and proportionately in the patient’s mouth, which means that the natural enamel is lost. Veneers can fall off easily, the process is irreversible, the lifespan is between 10 and 15 years, and there is still a chance of decay beneath the natural tooth structure.
Perfect Miami Smile lists a set of porcelain veneers they range between $10,000 and $30,000 for a full mouth. Some of the veneer technicians quote people in half and in some cases even lower.
According Advance Dentistry of Walnut Creek, general dentists, cosmetic dentists and in rare cases orthodontists are the only dental professionals who can provide veneers. On average, it takes at least eight years of school and anywhere between $200,000 and $300,000 to become a dentist.
Illegal trend sheds light on dental care costs
In addition to alerting people to the risks and dangers of either posing as veneers technicians or undergoing the cosmetic procedure, it shines a light on the affordability of teeth for the average American.
“The state of veneer technology has some layers,” Tiktoker gojosrealbm added to the conversation. “Dental care is extremely difficult […] the way people make fun of teeth is crazy. I always thought that was a bad thing because teeth are something you can’t control.”
In 2019, it was reported that 68.5 million Americans lacked dental insurance. According to the CareQuest Oral Health Institute, lower-income families cited cost as a reason for not going to the dentist regularly compared to higher-income families.
“I understand. Dentistry is expensive,” adds Dani. “But don’t fall for it. It will compromise your tooth structure and leave you with a lot more problems than you started with.”
