“Grills,” or “grillz,” are mouth pieces, typically gold cast, that cover some or all of the teeth. Made poplular in hip hop culture by such rappers as Nelly and Paul Wall, most are removable, cast from an alginate impression, and fit the same way as one would wear an athletic mouth guard. Some die-hard fans of the trend choose a more permanent way to express themselves via decorative teeth, by having anchor teeth prepped with gold-cast crowns to anchor the rest of the grill in place. A recent resurgence of the fad was witnessed in the mouth of Olympic gold medalist swimmer Ryan Lochte, whose choice to wear his infamous American flag grill on the podium was met with some criticism in London, when officials asked that he remove the it while at the podium. The diamond-encrusted mouth piece was designed and fabricated for the athlete by rapper Paul Wall, and cost Lochte upwards of $25,000.
Regarding hygienic concerns when wearing grills, dentists remain skeptical, although inconclusive; there is no strong evidence on either side regarding the long-term negative effects of indulging in the trend, although those who wear grills are urged to do so only seldomly. In addition to opting to sport removable grills, patients who insist upon wearing them are encouraged to take the same rigorous care as they would their own natural teeth, including brushing and disinfecting, to prevent plaque from building up and causing decay in underlying natural teeth.
The cost of grills can range anywhere from a couple hundred to several thousands of dollars. The cheaper versions are typically constructed from metal alloys, or a mixture of metals, and can cause allergic reactions. They can be made by jewelers; however, in many states, the act of taking an impression of someone’s teeth is defined as “dentistry,” and therefore requires a dental license. Even though the mouth pieces resemble jewelry, using jewelry cleaner to shine them is very strongly discouraged, as most of the chemical cleaning compounds are very abrasive and can result in accidental poisoning.