I am a firm believer in supporting my local dentist and I put my money where my mouth is.

I'm sure that there are some people out there who are very lucky and they have good teeth no matter what they do, no matter how they care or don't care for their teeth. It doesn't really matter, just as there are some people who are physically fit in other ways no matter what they do and how they care for their health.

Other parts of your body can usually be ignored. Don't let your doctor know that it says this in any place. He will legitimately argue with it. But let's be honest. If an internal part is sick then you are not going to know about it unless you don't function properly or unless it hurts. A regular checkup is not going to be meaningful to you because you don't see, feel, or recognize the need for it, and you can live many years very happily and very successfully without handling other parts of your body which don't show any outward signs. The teeth are different. Teeth seem to bother you not only right away but even before there's a problem. A problem with your gums hurts before it does any damage. A cracked or broken tooth interferes with your ability to eat, and so on. You don't have necessarily cavities or damage to your gums but yet you cannot use them properly because of an illness. This means that your teeth are far more sensitive than other parts of your body. As a result of this you're probably going to have no choice other than to visit your dentist regularly. Oh, you can pass up your periodical checkup and get away with it, but your teeth themselves will remind you that you gotta get over there. Don't wait for that reminder postcard or email from your dentist. It doesn't really matter. You could either go when he suggests or not go, but when your tooth hurts you're going to have to go and get it handled. There are certain things that you would love to put off and you just can't do it no matter what.

The good news is, as I've discovered later in life, is that after going to the dentist for a great deal, it actually stops hurting. That's right. At a certain point there are no more nerve endings that can be drilled in any given tooth. The dentist can try all he wants to torture but it won't happen unless he drills deep enough. Even root canals, at a certain point, seem to be painless. When you have to have a repeated root canal there may not be a nerve and the dentist would actually have to go beyond the tooth in order for it to hurt.

In other words, it just keeps getting better and better.

Yes, of course, you can use newer techniques instead of drilling and they seem to come out with many of them and that might be a good idea while you're younger. When you're older it doesn't matter any more.

My grandfather had at a certain point gave up on his teeth, went to the dentist, told him just pull them all out. And this was before the time of Novocaine was used, and he believes that as a result he was able to solve all of his problems with his teeth.

Perhaps.

Not having teeth is one way to solve the problems with teeth. Removing teeth and cleaning them in a glass is perhaps easier than not removing the teeth and brushing them regularly, especially since that system doesn't seem to work. The fact of the matter is that he was constantly suffering from his teeth until he had them all removed.