Turkey Teeth

Submission 11,758

About

Turkey Teeth, also known as Turkey Veneers or Turkey Crowns, refers to a controversial dental procedure done in the country of Turkey that places fake teeth on top of the natural teeth that are filed down to nubs before application. Patients travel to Turkey so it can be done at lower costs. Turkey Teeth are characterized as unnaturally white and box-shaped. Contestants on popular reality TV shows like Love Island have undergone the controversial procedure and viral videos of botched dental procedures have gone viral on TikTok in mid-2022.

Origin

On March 17th, 2020, Twitter^[1] user @garystorrie posted a tweet that read, "mum n dad were in turkey and they met a scottish boy who went over to get his teeth done and he had them all filed down ready to get veneers and the companys went bust and he had to get a flight home coz of this coronavirus 😂😂." The tweet gained roughly 5,900 retweets and over 66,500 likes in two years (shown below).

The earliest viral video of a person sharing the journey they took for their Turkish dental surgery has since been deleted. It was posted by TikToker^[2] @ellisenoorahhamadi in the Fall of 2020. The video had text overlay reading, "Did i go to turkey and get my teeth shaved off for veneers,” alongside an image of her natural teeth shaved down to tiny nubs. It is unclear how many interactions the TikTok received, but the video prompted responses from several TikTok users, including dentists that stitched the video to express their concerns.

On June 30th, 2020, TikToker^[3] @thebracesguy posted a stitch with the aforementioned video and explained the differences between veneers and crowns, earning roughly 4.1 million plays and 670,800 likes in two years (shown below, left). On November 18th, 2020, TikToker^[4] and licensed dentist @drshaadimanouchehri posted a video that commented on how TikToker @ellisenoorahhamadi did not get veneers but in fact got dental crowns. He stated that these can cause long-term dental issues like teeth abscesses and exposed nerves. The Turkey Teeth would need to be replaced every 10-15 years. His TikTok received roughly 9.3 million plays and 1.4 million likes in two years (shown below, right).

The earliest known instance of a TikToker^[5] using the term "Turkey Teeth" to refer to their cosmetic dental procedure is TikToker @taysb16, who on August 10th, 2020, posted a video alongside the sound "Veneers Check" to show off her new teeth, earning roughly 2.5 million plays and 91,100 likes over the course of two years (shown below). The sound was used nearly 200 times in 2020, all with people showing off their veneers, or in this case, tooth crowns.

Spread

In 2021, there were many developments in viral content related to cosmetic dental surgery done in Turkey. For instance, Business Insider^[6] write an article on Turkey Teeth in April 2021. According to the article, as of 2021, there were approximately 20,000 videos about "Turkey Teeth" on YouTube and 11 million plays on TikTok videos with the hashtag #turkeyteeth.

The term "Turkey Teeth" also entered mainstream slang en masse with Love Island's official Instagram ^[7] account posting previously unseen footage of contestant Chloe Burrows listing off Turkey Teeth as something she might be looking for in a potential romantic partner. The video was posted on July 25th, 2021, and has received over 1.2 million views as of August 2022 (shown below).

The year 2022 saw a resurgence in Turkey Teeth content, now with over 216.2 million views for videos with the hashtag #turkeyteeth. The BBC^[8] released a documentary called "Turkey Teeth: Bargain Smiles or Big Mistake," on 21st July, 2022, after a summer of several videos about botched Turkey Teeth procedures going viral. A video from TikToker^[9] @aida_azizii posted on May 23rd gathered over 21.1 million plays and 1.2 million likes in 2 months, and depicted a harrowing story about the user flying to Turkey and leaving with mismatched dental crowns (seen below, left). On July 6th, 2022, TikToker^[10] @jamiegrifithx posted a video falsely captioned "I GOT MY VENEERS REMOVED TIKTOK MADE ME HATE THEM." The video shows the creator getting veneers but filmed in reverse order, ending with a clip of his natural teeth (seen below, right). The video gathered over 21.5 million plays and almost 2 million likes, no doubt in part by viewers surprised to see someone claiming to get a irreversible procedure fixed.

On July 20th, TikToker^[11] @meldcov86 posted a video with the caption "#turkeyteeth #whydididothis #worsemistake #viral #fyp why did i ever get these worse mistake ever!! So many gaps so much pain." The video gained over 14.6 million plays and over 600,000 likes in two weeks (shown below, left). On July 22nd, TikToker^[12] @katieenglis3 posted a video captioned "Make awareness – warning people – still ongoing problems 3 months later! Message me if want to know the truth behind turkey teeth #makingawareness #turkey #turkeyteeth #crowns #veeners #becareful." The video gathered over 7.1 million views and over 250,000 likes in two weeks (shown below, right).