I am in my first year of college and I have seen a few people in their 20’s with really bad looking teeth. Which I am guessing they have dental decay and they do not seem to be doing anything about it. They are only in the early 20’s so I can not understand how their teeth can be so bad.

Answer:  There are many reason for someone to have bad teeth. It is easy to assume that one main reason would be that they may not be practicing proper dental care habits.  Although this is often times the first thing one thinks when seeing someone with bad teeth it may not always be the case.  Other factors can include:

1) Cost:  Often times lower income people feel they can not afford proper dental care and do not see a dentist regularly or as often as needed.  Although one can make a point in saying toothpaste and floss is not costly your dental care requirements doesn’t stop there and seeing a dentist in order to maintain healthy teeth and gums is very larger factor.
2) Medicines and Health Issues: There are many medicines people may need to take for their health care that can have adverse side effects on their teeth. In addition medical conditions such as diabetes can also have an adverse effect on their teeth and gums. People with these issues may need to see a dentist more often in order to maintain their dental health.
3) Other Risk Factors:  Higher risk factor that can effect dental health can include, such things as poor diet, smoking and drug use.

Without knowing the person you really do not know why they may have poor dental health and you should be careful about making snap decisions about them.