There is an incredible number of people who are afraid of the dentist. Many of them have had a bad experience, but oftentimes their fear comes from something they’ve seen in the media.

For sure, dentists have had some pretty poor representatives in pop culture. Here are some of the most prominent examples, and why your dentist won’t make you feel the same way.

When they need to take care of their teeth, people go to a dentist, not a doctor. That may be one reason why people think of their oral health as being disconnected from the rest of the body.
However, contemporary scientific research has found that disease in the mouth can have pretty significant effects on key organs. Gum disease in particular has been connected to a host of other health conditions. Here are a few examples.