I often find myself going to Wikipedia to read up on dental related subject matter- but it honestly falls to the same issue that most content falls into on a dentist’s “procedure” section. Its all fluff speak- and reads like an advertisement. I think this is mostly because there are a few people with some very light things to say on most subject matters, and a whole lot of people looking to get a loosely associated back link. It makes everything read so bulky and the article not very fun to read. Its also not as informative as you would like to think given the amount written.

A great example of this? http://www.dentistry.leeds.ac.uk . They have links everywhere through Wikipedia. And, for example, the one on the “dental plaque” website doesn’t even go anywhere on their website. At least that one tries to link to something relevant that might actually matter. On the “scaling and root planing” page someone is offering a reference for the notation “scaling and root planning is one of the most effective periodontal methods of treating gum disease before it becomes severe”.

If you go to the tooth paste page, you find “SLS has been proposed to increase the frequency of mouth ulcers in some people, as it can dry out the protective layer of oral tissues, causing the underlying tissues to become damaged.[16]“… referenced to a page that just talks about canker sores. A few sentence before that is “with the exception of toothpaste intended to be used on pets such as dogs and cats, and toothpaste used by astronauts, most toothpaste is not intended to be swallowed, and doing so may cause nausea or diarrhea.” ‘Tartar fighting’ toothpastes have been debated.”. That is right, they invoke astronauts… linking to www.toxictoothpaste.org, a website that no longer exists. Wikipedia is just riddled with faulty dental practices.

It gets worse the more you look. including a link to herbal toothpaste… ” Due to the increased demand of natural products, most of the toothpaste manufacturers now produce herbal toothpastes”.

I am considering going through these articles and cleaning them up… but then what would I have to write about?