The tooth fairy better start shelling out more than loonies and toonies for these little girls. According to the “pageant world”, missing teeth are unacceptable. But not to worry little divas, flippers to the rescue! What are they you ask? Partial dentures that give young contestants the illusion of having a movie star smile.
After perusing the Internet, we happened to come across “The Flipper People” at unitysmiledesign.com. This fabulous site makes transforming a child’s gappy teeth as easy as 1-2-3. After ordering an impression kit, parents use a special putty to create molds of their child’s upper and lower teeth. Simply mail these impressions back to Unity Smile Design, and parents can wave goodbye to those “unacceptable gaps”. Nine days later your child is flashing a whole new smile. But like all things in life, these luxuries cost a pretty penny. Flippers can range anywhere from $300 - $400! Let’s hope kids start waking up to cheques under their pillows.
What happened to the innocence of childhood when kids were proud to flash their imperfect, “gappy” smiles? Instead of encouraging kids to embrace their awkward stages of adolesence, flippers are promoting a false sense of confidence. Does this confidence disappear when young contestants are sporting their real smiles? If kids are told that they need flippers to win and succeed in beauty pageants, how will they ever feel fully confident in other aspects of their lives? Will they feel insecure at school? In soccer practice? At piano lessons? Flippers do not encourage natural beauty and feeling comfortable in your own skin...or in this case, your own teeth. Young girls are under enough pressure to fit a certain "image" as it is! Let's be real here people, without the help of cosmetic surgery or by the grace of God, almost nobody's smile will ever look as perfect as a flipper. Will this leave young girls feeling unsatisfied when they mature into their real smiles? Imperfections make us who we are - children should be encouraged to love their flaws, not mask them.
"HEY! PARENTS! Leave their teeth alone!"
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