What it means to be British.

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Neesy

#1 fan (Annie Wilkes cousin) 1st cousin Mom's side
May 24, 2012
61,289
239,271
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
...and I'll stack up American dental care against the British anyday....meth addicts, rednecks and Honey Boo-Boo's mom notwithstanding...
I did notice something when I went over to Scotland - when I got back my dentist asked what happened to my teeth. He noticed the condition of them had worsened. I think it had something to do with this:

No fluoride in the water on this particular island in Scotland (not sure if that is the case all over Great Britain), they sold milk with no added vitamin D (which I found strange but it is apparently the norm) and they also get less sunshine overall than Canada/US which is another source of vitamin D.

This could all contribute to poorer quality teeth. (and I was only there for a few months!)

The old way of looking at things over there as well was to just yank out all the teeth and replace them with a lovely set of "falsies" i.e. dentures - yikes!

I hope the newer generation have changed things since then.
 

Mr Nobody

Well-Known Member
Jul 9, 2008
3,306
9,050
Walsall, England
@Neesy: There's definitely fluoride in the water supply, at least on the mainland/in England, Wales and Nor'n Iron. It was optional, but Tony Blair's govt made it compulsory in their first term.
Problem with fluoride is, they have to be careful to get the dosage right. Because we don't get as much sun to help out with the gnashers situation, we need more fluoride added to the water...but too much is worse than not enough, since, from what I read at the time, it acts in a similar way to arsenic (it doesn't come out again), can cause your hair to turn green in too-high concentrations, and (at that time) there was a suggested link to the onset of Alzheimer's Disease.
I'd rather have false teeth, tbh. :D (Maybe imagine that as a toothless grin...)

That menu, too...vegetable and tofu curry? WTH? Coming here with their bloody swish, trendy stuff, bloody effete bunch of snobs. *grumble, grumble*
BTW, when in Scotland, did you try a deep-fried Mars bar? (I'm not kidding.)
 

Neesy

#1 fan (Annie Wilkes cousin) 1st cousin Mom's side
May 24, 2012
61,289
239,271
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
@Neesy: There's definitely fluoride in the water supply, at least on the mainland/in England, Wales and Nor'n Iron. It was optional, but Tony Blair's govt made it compulsory in their first term.
Problem with fluoride is, they have to be careful to get the dosage right. Because we don't get as much sun to help out with the gnashers situation, we need more fluoride added to the water...but too much is worse than not enough, since, from what I read at the time, it acts in a similar way to arsenic (it doesn't come out again), can cause your hair to turn green in too-high concentrations, and (at that time) there was a suggested link to the onset of Alzheimer's Disease.
I'd rather have false teeth, tbh. :D (Maybe imagine that as a toothless grin...)

That menu, too...vegetable and tofu curry? WTH? Coming here with their bloody swish, trendy stuff, bloody effete bunch of snobs. *grumble, grumble*
BTW, when in Scotland, did you try a deep-fried Mars bar? (I'm not kidding.)

You are cracking me up with those comments. Yes - they did have deep fried Mars bars down at the Pier at the Fish and Chips place. This was in Brodick while waiting for the ferry which took us to Ardrossan and from there it was a nice long train ride to Glasgow. (I personally never had the pleasure of a deep fried Mars bar xD)

By the way, too much fluoride causes something called "fluorosis" which can lead to dark spots on teeth.

Another thing I noticed back in 2005 was that everyone thought it was just great to do this:

Coming from Manitoba where smoking had been banned in public places, it was a bit of a culture shock for me.
(I'm sure they are a bit more enlightened now and are all wearing nicotine patches or chewing nicotine gum!)
Green hair? are you sure you haven't been hanging out with punks or somethin'? ;;D
 

Mr Nobody

Well-Known Member
Jul 9, 2008
3,306
9,050
Walsall, England
Everyone decided to wear lipstick? In Scotland? ;)
Our smoking ban came into force...when, internet?...Internet says July 2007 for England, 15 months after Scotland in March 2006. Pubs have been going out of business at an average rate of one per week ever since. Several re-open as desperate punters try to keep the local going, but ultimately the numbers don't stack up and it fails. Then someone else has a go, until, in the end, every admits defeat and the brewery/pub chain flogs the land to property developers. Lots of pubs are pretty old, to the point where they've become listed buildings, meaning they can't be demolished and/or certain features have to be preserved, be it the outside brickwork and windows, certain parts of the interior, and so on.
Cue a spot of arson for which no one ever gets caught, et voila. Do as you like, Mr Developer.
 

Neesy

#1 fan (Annie Wilkes cousin) 1st cousin Mom's side
May 24, 2012
61,289
239,271
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Everyone decided to wear lipstick? In Scotland? ;)
Our smoking ban came into force...when, internet?...Internet says July 2007 for England, 15 months after Scotland in March 2006. Pubs have been going out of business at an average rate of one per week ever since. Several re-open as desperate punters try to keep the local going, but ultimately the numbers don't stack up and it fails. Then someone else has a go, until, in the end, every admits defeat and the brewery/pub chain flogs the land to property developers. Lots of pubs are pretty old, to the point where they've become listed buildings, meaning they can't be demolished and/or certain features have to be preserved, be it the outside brickwork and windows, certain parts of the interior, and so on.
Cue a spot of arson for which no one ever gets caught, et voila. Do as you like, Mr Developer.
We had the same argument over here for why places like The Legion should be exempt from the smoking ban, etc. I figure if the smokers can go stand outside or hang out on the deck in the extreme cold (minus 30 C) then they will keep going out. They can duck out, have a smoke and then come back in. The world moves on, and people learn better. Sorry - I work in a hospital and type lots of cancer reports. But - that's just my personal opinion.
Regarding lipstick - yah - the guys in the kilts DID look funny with pink petunia Avon lipstick :sentimental:;DD=D
 
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Mr Nobody

Well-Known Member
Jul 9, 2008
3,306
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Walsall, England
Well, I've never actively smoked, only passively, thanks to my mom and grandparents, so the ban didn't affect me. Cancer rates here have gone up - from 1 in 5 in the 70s to 1 in 3(.37) in the middle of the last decade, to 1 in 2.83 or thereabouts now. Getting on for a 50% chance of getting the Big C at some point in your life.
But of course, a lot of that is the legacy of the era of heavy industry, the resulting waste, using asbestos for everything (until the 80s - most of my old schoolrooms had asbestos ceilings materials), and a fair dollop of radioactive crap from Sellafield and even Chernobyl (they still have to test the soil and sheep in the Peak District (Derbyshire and north-east Staffordshire into Nottinghamshire) and the Welsh mountains, and there are a fair number of muties born and subsequently destroyed each year - and our local water supply comes from reservoirs in Wales. So really, potential fluoride poisoning is the least of our problems!). And God only knows what extra delights fracking might bring.
Still, gotta die of something, right? I'd feel bloody daft lying there dying of nothing. ;)
 
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Sundrop

Sunny the Great & Wonderful
Jun 12, 2008
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I haven't understood much of anything in this thread....guess I have nothing British in me......just North Carolina bumpkin girl.....
 

Neesy

#1 fan (Annie Wilkes cousin) 1st cousin Mom's side
May 24, 2012
61,289
239,271
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Well, I've never actively smoked, only passively, thanks to my mom and grandparents, so the ban didn't affect me. Cancer rates here have gone up - from 1 in 5 in the 70s to 1 in 3(.37) in the middle of the last decade, to 1 in 2.83 or thereabouts now. Getting on for a 50% chance of getting the Big C at some point in your life.
But of course, a lot of that is the legacy of the era of heavy industry, the resulting waste, using asbestos for everything (until the 80s - most of my old schoolrooms had asbestos ceilings materials), and a fair dollop of radioactive crap from Sellafield and even Chernobyl (they still have to test the soil and sheep in the Peak District (Derbyshire and north-east Staffordshire into Nottinghamshire) and the Welsh mountains, and there are a fair number of muties born and subsequently destroyed each year - and our local water supply comes from reservoirs in Wales. So really, potential fluoride poisoning is the least of our problems!). And God only knows what extra delights fracking might bring.
Still, gotta die of something, right? I'd feel bloody daft lying there dying of nothing. ;)

Cool @Mr Nobody - I know what you mean - I grew up with the smell of cigarette smoke hanging in the air. Dad never smoked but Mom was from Scotland and started smoking what she called "Willy Woodbines" when she was 14 - it is an awful habit, I agree!

I would love to go back to the UK some time. Guess I should buy lottery tickets so if I should ever win, I could then afford to go back for a nice long sightseeing vacation!

upload_2014-3-4_6-17-11.jpeg
 
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Neesy

#1 fan (Annie Wilkes cousin) 1st cousin Mom's side
May 24, 2012
61,289
239,271
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
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