TikTok has emerged as the go-to destination for debuting experimental beauty hacks. It brought us Abby Roberts‘ insane transformation into Tiger King’s Joe Exotic, this genius long-lasting contour trick and a truck load of makeup inspo.
While we’re fully behind some of the at-home beauty advice that started cropping up over lockdown – like hair root concealers and DIY waxes – TikTok’s #JustDidABadThing hashtag has spammed us with beauty fails like frazzled dye jobs and shaved-off brows.
Now, the #teethfilingchallenge, the latest WTF trend to take off, has seen some cray-cray beauty renegades re-shaping their teeth with their nail files. “I’m gonna file my teeth down with a nail file because they’re not perfect, I have some ridges and we’re balling on a budget,” explained one user named @miadio who filmed herself sanding down her incisors and filing her canines into vampire points.
Unsurprisingly, dentists are not here for it.
Despite the trend helping some users to go viral, experts are warning that it can have life-long repercussions and damage teeth irreparably.
Beside the bacteria that can build up on used nail files, “filing down your teeth using a nail file is incredibly damaging and could cause permanent damage to the tooth structure as well as the enamel around the edge of the tooth,” warns Sunny Sihra, Lead dentist and owner of the Simply Teeth Clinic. “You cannot regrow tooth enamel, so the damage is irreversible. Any cosmetic contouring should only be done by a professional with appropriate sterilised instruments.”
“The moment you start tampering with your tooth structure yourself you are potentially creating irreversible damage and causing destruction to your teeth. Your teeth aren’t like nails which can grow back, your teeth will not recover and you may have to seek professional dental treatment to help repair any damage,” says Sunny. “If you start to file your teeth down so they are all the same length, you are preventing your teeth from remaining strong and healthy for longer, and you may find that you have teeth troubles earlier on.”
Dare you to watch it without cringing…