Teen Reveals Horrifying Method She Used to Avoid 'American Girl Doll Teeth'

With 82 percent of Americans saying their teeth impact on their confidence, it's no surprise people will do anything to get the perfect smile. But one teenager has shocked the internet after revealing the drastic measures she once took to get straight teeth.

When she was growing up, Christina Scully desperately wanted the perfect smile that she saw on a host of celebrities and on magazine covers. So, the Michigan resident took matters into her own hands by using a nail file to even out her teeth's imperfections.

Scully, now 19, initially started shaping her teeth at the age of 10, telling Newsweek that she was "obsessed with having fangs." (Weren't we all?) But when she turned 14, she picked up the nail file once again because she "didn't like how pronounced" her front teeth looked, as they reminded her of "American Girl doll teeth."

Thankfully, she didn't cause any lasting damage with her actions, but it's safe to say her dentist would not have been happy with what she tried to do.

"I shaved them just because they were uneven and had grooves that wouldn't go away. I felt like my teeth made me look like a beaver in a way," Scully continued. "So I started filing my teeth when I was 10 to sharpen my canines.

"It wasn't necessarily painful though, and I shaved little to nothing off, so it didn't cause any irreversible damage."

On January 12 she shared a video on TikTok (@uhmmokayyy22) which revealed her former habit, and the clip instantly went viral, leading to more than 23.8 million views and 1.4 million likes on TikTok.

While Scully's actions are drastic, she isn't alone in wanting the perfect smile. In fact, a recent YouGov poll revealed that 70 percent of Americans feel it's important to have conventionally attractive teeth, and women were more likely than men to say the appearance of their teeth influenced their self-confidence.

As a result, 17 percent have undergone a cosmetic dentistry procedure, while 30 percent said they've considered cosmetic dental intervention. The most common treatment was teeth whitening, which 19 percent of Americans have had.

Don't Try This at Home

Scully's at-home dentistry shocked many people, and it left professionals horrified. Among them is endodontist Dr. Alex Mehler, who told Newsweek that this is "incredibly concerning on many levels." He explained that making teeth alterations leaves little to no "capacity for regeneration," and it shaves off the external enamel, which makes teeth more sensitive to temperature and chewing.

"The enamel forms the most protective layer over the teeth, so maintaining this can help prevent cavities and disease spreading to the dental pulp," Dr. Mehler said. "Underneath enamel is the much softer and more permeable layer, which leads to a much greater chance of tooth decay."

Dr. Mehler, the vice president of endodontic support services at Aspen Dental, cautions people not to modify their teeth because things can easily go awry, causing lasting complications. Dentists go through years of studying and training, and they have specialist equipment to make alterations, which a nail file just can't replicate.

"If too much tooth is shaved off, it can cause a problem by exposing the dental pulp. The younger people are, the closer the pulp is to the edge of their teeth. This means that the younger you are, the greater the effects of shaving the edges of your teeth," he continued.

How Did Social Media React?

Scully wanted to share her experience online to "deter a younger audience from doing it and causing damage," but she has been amazed by the response she received.

She told Newsweek: "I honestly have no clue why I hit post, but I'm glad I did because thousands of people related to my video. The reaction was a mixture between shock and relating to my craziness."

With more than 6,900 comments on the post at the time of writing, plenty of TikTok users shared their own experiences of how much they hated their teeth while growing up. One comment reads: "The way I did this too because everyone said I have buck teeth."

Another person wrote: "I wanted to do that to get rid of the ridges on my front teeth."

But one TikToker responded: "I'm sorry, you what?"

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