The dental practices of Amish communities show a remarkable contrast in how rural healthcare priorities work. Amish parents believe their children have excellent oral health, with 87.7% rating it “very good.” Yet a study in Ohio’s Geauga County revealed something quite different – 88% of Amish children suffered from untreated tooth decay. This gap shows how differently these traditional communities look at dental care.
Amish people, women in particular, often opt to have all their teeth pulled instead of treating specific problems. This choice makes sense to them as an affordable and practical option. These communities live mostly in rural areas far from dental clinics. They turn to unlicensed practitioners who pull teeth without modern anesthetics. The Amish community’s religious beliefs play a role too – they see dental problems as God’s will. Dentures become an affordable alternative to endless dental work. A 1985 study showed that Amish people’s cavity rates were lower than the general population’s. Still, about 50% didn’t go to the dentist regularly.
This piece looks at the reasons behind the Amish community’s preference for teeth removal. It explores their cultural motivations and shows how programs like Indiana Hemophilia Comprehensive Center’s Amish Dental Intervention Project help tackle these unique healthcare challenges.
Understanding Amish Values and Simplicity
The Amish way of life centers on their steadfast dedication to community, simplicity, and staying apart from the modern world. These basic principles shape how they live, including their views on healthcare and dental practices.
Community over individualism
The German concept of Gelassenheit (pronounced Gay-la-sen-hite) sits at the core of Amish culture and shapes their view of the world. This principle covers:
- Self-surrender and submission to God’s will
- Putting community needs before personal wants
- Being content with simplicity and saying no to individualism
- Accepting life’s challenges calmly
Their values stand quite different from mainstream American culture’s focus on individualism. The Amish put their community’s well-being above personal rights and choices. They trust wisdom passed down through generations more than personal views or modern scientific findings.
“The Amish believe and practice that while the individual person is important and there is a place for autonomy, the community is more important than the individual,” says a researcher who works closely with Lancaster County Amish. This group-first mindset guides their healthcare choices, including practices like teeth removal.
Modesty and humility in daily life
Humility serves as the life-blood of Amish identity. You can see it in their plain dress, simple homes, and their choice to avoid modern conveniences. They stay away from anything that might encourage pride or draw attention to one person.
Their commitment runs deeper than just looks. They assess all modern technologies and practices based on how these might affect their community bonds. Many Amish communities skip electricity, cars, and modern healthcare facilities. This choice isn’t about religious rules – they worry these conveniences might hurt their communal lifestyle.
Their focus on humility shapes how they think about dental looks. Amish families don’t worry much about their teeth’s appearance because they value humility over looks. This helps explain why many Amish people, especially women, might choose to have all their teeth pulled instead of getting complex dental work.
How these values influence health decisions
The Amish make healthcare choices, including dental work like teeth removal, based on their core beliefs:
They believe strongly that God is the ultimate healer. While their Bible doesn’t forbid modern medicine, they see illness through spiritual eyes and believe God chooses when to heal. This makes them “more willing to yield to the mysteries of divine providence” about health outcomes.
The Amish prefer practical solutions over looks. Pulling teeth instead of getting ongoing dental care fits their love of simplicity and practicality. Dentures make more sense than complex dental work for people who care more about function than appearance.
Community resources play a big role in health choices. Most Amish say no to insurance and help each other instead. Expensive dental treatments might put too much strain on the whole community. So questions like “why do amish women remove their teeth” usually have practical answers rather than religious ones.
The Amish look at health mainly through their ability to work and help their community. When tooth problems get in the way of daily work, they might prefer pulling teeth over temporary fixes.
Looking at their culture this way helps us understand that practices like Amish teeth removal aren’t religious rules. They’re practical choices that show their deep beliefs in simplicity, community responsibility, and accepting God’s plan.
Why Do Amish Remove Their Teeth?
The Amish community’s choice to extract teeth comes from practical needs rather than religious beliefs. Their healthcare decisions stem from a mix of economic, geographical, and cultural factors that shape their traditional societies.
Cost and access to dental care
Money creates the biggest problem for dental care in Amish communities. Research shows that 86.6% of Amish families don’t have dental insurance. This makes routine care hard to afford. A third (31%) of Amish parents can’t get dental care for their kids when needed, and 64.6% say cost stands in their way.
Rural locations make these money problems worse:
- Amish communities live far from dental professionals
- Families must travel 10.3 kilometers on average to see a dentist, and 25% travel over 13.9 kilometers
- Horse-drawn buggies make regular dental visits tough
“The Amish don’t usually seek dental care from modern dentists, not because their church forbids them, but because they don’t have insurance, and the costs for such services are way too expensive for people living a simple life,” one researcher notes. This reality leaves full extraction as the most budget-friendly option.
Preference for practicality over esthetics
The Amish value simplicity and modesty, so they look for practical solutions instead of cosmetic ones. “Dentistry to the Amish is seen as an economical choice, not one of vanity or necessity”. This viewpoint guides their oral health choices.
Dentures make sense to many Amish people and fit their cultural values. “My mom and my sisters had a denture when they were teenagers. Many Amish lost their teeth when they were young”, one Amish girl shared. This shows how normal the practice has become across generations.
The community’s focus on function over looks creates an environment where dental decisions center on practical results. One researcher notes, “They’re more likely to opt for tooth extraction if it resolves pain or prevents further complications, even if it results in a less esthetically pleasing smile”.
Avoiding long-term dental treatments
Amish teeth removal often serves as a strategic choice to skip ongoing dental care. These communities value self-sufficiency and practicality, so a one-time extraction often beats the burden of lifetime dental maintenance.
Research shows that 46% of Amish adults see dentists less than every two years. This irregular care makes preventive dentistry hard and leads to serious dental issues.
“Therefore, many Amish people choose to have all their teeth pulled out in one visit to prevent long-term dental visits and treatments”. This approach offers clear benefits:
- No need for frequent travel to dental offices
- One solution instead of temporary fixes
- Lower lifetime dental costs through one procedure
- No worry about future dental problems
Many Amish people see full extraction as prevention. “For them, the most effective preventive care for tooth decay is to remove one, a couple, or even a mouthful of healthy teeth”. While outsiders might find this strange, it makes sense within their cultural and economic reality.
Amish dental practices show a practical response to healthcare barriers, not religious rules. Their distinct lifestyle and its limits explain why dentures are so common among Amish men and women.
Is Teeth Removal a Tradition or a Choice?
Many people think the Amish remove their teeth because of religious beliefs. This common misconception couldn’t be further from the truth. The real story behind Amish dental practices comes down to practical choices rather than any religious rules.
Dispelling the myth of religious requirement
The Amish faith has no rules about pulling teeth. “Contrary to what many non-Amish people believe, pulling teeth is not a cultural or religious practice specific to the Amish,” according to a reliable source. This myth took off after a TV show featured a young Amish woman with full dentures at age 19. The show wrongly labeled it as “Amish tradition”.
Amish religious leaders have never taken a stance on dental practices. Their community’s approach to dental health stems from cultural and economic factors. Yes, it is common to see many Amish communities value natural teeth preservation when possible.
Cultural norms vs. formal doctrine
The Amish way of life shows clear differences between cultural habits and religious rules. Money plays a bigger role than faith when it comes to dental decisions. One researcher notes, “In some Amish communities, particularly in the past, full tooth extraction at a relatively young age was seen as a practical solution to ongoing dental problems”.
Different Amish groups handle dental care in their own ways. Several factors shape their approach:
- Geographic location and isolation
- Level of interaction with non-Amish society
- Family traditions and community expectations
- Economic resources available to the community
A fascinating study by dentistry professor Bagramian in 1985 revealed something unexpected. Amish communities had fewer cavities and healthier gums than the general population. Their healthy diet and limited sweet snacks made the difference. This finding challenges the idea that Amish dental hygiene is poor.
Role of community expectations
The Amish make health decisions based on what their community thinks. One observer points out, “For a variety of reasons including convenience and cost, some Amish (particularly in more traditional groups) may be less apt to visit dentists for preventive care”. This often leads to tooth extraction as the go-to solution when problems arise.
Different Amish orders take different approaches. Modern Amish communities now welcome current dental treatments, including braces for cosmetic reasons. The more traditional Swartzentruber Amish stick to their old ways.
The choice to remove teeth comes down to practicality, not religious duty. An Amish community member puts it this way: “Having a tooth, several teeth, or a mouthful of teeth removed is commonplace among the Amish… Dentistry to the Amish is seen as an economical choice, not one of vanity or necessity”.
The Role of Amish Women and Children in Dental Decisions
Dental practices in Amish communities show clear gender-based patterns. Women and men face different expectations that shed light on family dynamics and health priorities in these tight-knit communities.
Why do Amish women remove their teeth?
Amish women’s decision to extract teeth comes from economic practicality rather than cultural rules. “For Amish women, having problematic teeth extracted rather than undergoing expensive and continuous dental procedures is a practical choice,” since they don’t have dental insurance. Dentures offer an economical solution compared to lifelong dental care.
Family duties shape these choices significantly. Amish women take care of their children first and put their own healthcare second. They often pick tooth extraction as their final solution while trying to give their children better dental care options when money is tight.
“Many Amish women lost their teeth when they were teenagers,” said one Amish girl. This practice continues through generations as daughters watch and learn from their mothers’ dental care decisions.
Amish teeth removal before and after: real stories
Rebecca Schmucker’s appearance on “Breaking Amish” brought nationwide attention to this practice. She had all her teeth pulled by an untrained Amish dentist at age 19. “These dentists do nothing, except pull your teeth,” she said and explained they used basic pliers with minimal training.
Rebecca tried to convince her husband later in the series to choose the same path instead of costly dental work. She explained she had “sacrificed” her teeth because she “could not afford to keep them”.
Dental care awareness among Amish children
Numbers tell a concerning story about Amish children’s dental health:
- Mobile dental units found that all but one of these children (ages 3-17) had never seen a dentist
- Each child had about 7 untreated cavities on average
- Parents reported that 31% of children couldn’t get dental care when needed
- Money problems stopped 64.6% of families from getting dental care
Parents often see their children’s dental health differently than dentists do. Most Amish parents (87.7%) think their children’s teeth are “good” or “very good”, despite widespread decay. This gap shows dental health education needs improvement.
Several programs now reach out to help Amish communities. Dental students Kelly Burch and Colleen Lacombe learned something shocking at “Give Kids a Smile Day.” They said that “of the 120 children they saw that day, only four were free of caries”.
The Future of Dental Care in Amish Communities
Modern dentistry now connects with Amish healthcare traditions through innovative initiatives. These partnerships show a better understanding of dental challenges in communities where teeth removal remains common.
Outreach programs and mobile clinics
Mobile dental units work well for communities that usually hesitate to seek outside care. Dental students at the University at Buffalo built relationships with Amish families after they noticed urgent needs during a “Give Kids a Smile Day” event. Students now visit monthly to teach dental care under shade trees at Amish farms—a method that respects their cultural boundaries.
Indiana University School of Dentistry managed to keep monthly visits to rural northern Indiana specifically to help Amish children. These programs showed how mobile dentistry reaches underserved groups:
- The Community Dental Clinic in LaGrange County started with just four operatories in 1999 and grew to eleven facilities that serve both Amish children and adults
- A pediatric dentistry team in Geauga County, Ohio, ran a dental mobile unit four days monthly throughout 2011
Education and fluoride initiatives
Treatment efforts work hand in hand with preventive measures to address mechanisms behind Amish teeth removal. The Amish Dental Intervention Project, a complete three-year initiative, put in place:
- Water fluoride testing program for Amish families using well water
- Non-systemic oral fluoride rinse programs for about 1,000 Amish children
- 47 school education programs that reached over 2,100 Amish children
These educational programs recognize that many Amish communities use well water without fluoride. This becomes another reason why dental problems often lead to extraction.
Challenges in changing long-held practices
Big obstacles still exist. Research shows 86.6% of Amish families don’t have dental insurance. Cost becomes the biggest problem for 64.6% of those who can’t access care. The average 10.3-kilometer travel distance to dental facilities creates more difficulties.
Cultural views about dental health need careful handling. Many Amish parents don’t know their children’s actual oral health condition. This calls for educational approaches that honor community values while teaching preventive care.
These initiatives need dental professionals to build trust with Amish community leaders to succeed. Successful programs have already shown this by asking Amish bishops before starting their work.
The practice of Amish teeth removal shows a complex mix of cultural values, economic realities, and practical choices rather than religious rules. Amish communities make dental decisions based on their life view of simplicity, community welfare, and down-to-earth solutions. These practices come from money constraints and limited dental care access, not cultural tradition.
A big gap exists between how parents see their children’s dental health and what dentists actually find. Most Amish parents rate their kids’ oral health as “good” or “very good.” Studies show decay problems are systemic. This gap helps explain why pulling teeth becomes the go-to fix – it fits their practical approach to healthcare with just one visit.
All the same, good changes have come through shared projects that respect Amish cultural lines. Mobile dental clinics, teaching programs, and fluoride treatments now reach these underserved families. These outreach efforts understand the unique challenges Amish families face and offer culturally respectful options instead of complete teeth removal.
Amish dental choices need a deeper look beyond quick assumptions. Their decisions show reasonable responses to real healthcare barriers, not religious rules. Better Amish dental health will come by respecting their cultural values while making preventive care more available.
Pulling teeth stays common in many Amish areas, but these patterns will change as teaching programs and mobile clinics build trust with community leaders. The story of Amish dental practices shows that healthcare choices always fit within specific cultural and economic settings – a viewpoint that leads to better understanding instead of judgment.
Here are some FAQs about the amish teeth removal:
Why do the Amish remove their teeth?
The practice of Amish teeth removal stems from cultural beliefs about vanity and practicality rather than medical necessity. Some Amish women undergo teeth removal before marriage as a way to avoid focusing on physical appearance, leading to the phenomenon of Amish women teeth removal why it occurs. The Amish teeth removal before and after transition often involves getting dentures, which are seen as more practical for long-term use in their simple lifestyle.
What happened to Rebecca’s teeth breaking Amish?
On “Breaking Amish,” Rebecca revealed she had her teeth removed as part of Amish women teeth removal tradition before leaving the community. Her dental situation highlighted the common Amish teeth removal practice that many young women undergo. The show documented her journey getting dental implants to reverse the effects of her earlier Amish woman teeth removal experience.
How do Amish people take care of their teeth?
Despite the Amish teeth removal traditions for some women, many Amish maintain basic dental hygiene with traditional methods. They typically use simple toothbrushes and homemade remedies rather than modern dental care products. The Amish women teeth removal why question doesn’t reflect their overall dental practices, as most Amish value keeping their natural teeth when possible.
Do all Amish wear dentures?
Not all Amish wear dentures, though the Amish women teeth removal practice does lead some to use them. Many Amish maintain their natural teeth through good hygiene and avoiding sugary diets. The Amish teeth removal before and after photos show that while some choose dentures, others keep their natural teeth throughout life.
Can the Amish use toilet paper?
Yes, the Amish can and do use toilet paper despite their general avoidance of modern conveniences. This differs from their approach to Amish teeth removal, which is more about cultural tradition than technology rejection. Their use of basic hygiene products shows they make practical exceptions to their simple lifestyle.
Why do Amish not bathe?
This is actually a misconception – the Amish do bathe regularly, just without modern plumbing in many cases. Unlike the specific tradition of Amish women teeth removal, bathing habits aren’t part of their religious rules. They maintain cleanliness through sponge baths, washbasins, and sometimes communal bath houses.
Do Amish couples sleep in separate beds?
Some older Amish couples may sleep separately for practical reasons, but this isn’t a religious requirement like the Amish teeth removal tradition for some women. Sleeping arrangements vary by family and community, unlike the more widespread practice of Amish women teeth removal before marriage. Most younger couples share a bed in typical fashion.
