A man who downed six litres of pop EVERY DAY has revealed the horrific effect his fizzy drink addiction had on his teeth . Michael Sheridan had to have 27 of his rotten gnashers completely surgically removed and replaced with dentures.
The 32-year-old had been living off a diet of soft food for a decade because of the constant pain his teeth caused him- until a team of specialist dentists stepped in. Michael, from County Meath, Ireland, lived on a bland diet of yoghurt, Weetabix and soup - as even biting into a sandwich left him howling in pain.
He said: “I was addicted to fizzy drinks. I’d drink six litres or more a day - whatever I could get my hands on. I always had a bottle of mineral in my hand.
“I knew if I went to a dentist that I’d have to stop drinking fizzy drinks and I didn’t want to do that before.
"I also knew that all my teeth would have to come out and I couldn’t afford that financially.”
But the dad-of-three had to bite the bullet and get his decayed choppers whipped out.
Dentist Dr David Murnaghan, who met Michael through a shared interest in water polo, was so concerned about his oral health that he offered to take on the mammoth task for free.
He said: “I knew Michael through water polo but didn’t know him well enough to talk to him about his teeth.
“It was only during a car-share trip to Galway that the subject came up and I told Michael to come and see me for a proper consultation.
“I knew his teeth meant a serious threat to his health. He couldn’t chew his food properly, he couldn’t bite into a sandwich like most people and he was in pain every day.”
It took almost a year for the fizzy-drink addict, who works as a kitchen porter at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium, to pick up the confidence to arrange the appointment, which finally took place last November.
He said: “I used to keep my teeth hidden and talk to as few possible to people. If I was out with friends, I’d sit further back when talking because I was conscious of my bad breath.
“The kids in the family started noticing my teeth so I went back into my shell even further.
“I would eat soup, yoghurt and Weetabix every week. Sometimes I wouldn’t sleep because of the pain and if I went out for a meal with my partner Linda, I’d have pain straight away.”
He could survive on just one meal a day because his appetite was suppressed by the litres of fizzy drinks that he was consuming.
With the help of David and his colleagues, Michael didn’t have to worry about the cost and had all 27 teeth surgically removed in one sitting at Boyne Dental Implant Clinic last week. After the procedure, David inserted dentures to give Michael’s gums time to heal and in April, he will return to get twelve implants inserted into his jawbone. Bridges will also be attached to these to give Michael his new permanent smile. He hasn’t had a fizzy drink since just before the surgery and will soon meet with a nutritionist and psychologist recommended by Dr Murnaghan to help him on this stage of the journey.
One of the dentists, a friend Michael met through water polo, was so worried about the state of his teeth he carried out the €50,000 (£43,800) procedure for free. Now he is smiling again after getting gleaming new dentures fitted.
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