Eddie The Eagle Shares Dental Story After Splash! Victory
Great Britain’s first ever Olympic ski-jumper has revealed he had his jaw broken in order to save his back teeth. Eddie the Eagle, known for his protruding jaw line, says he was advised by his dentist to have his jaw reset so as to save his back teeth from being worn away.
Speaking in an interview after his success on ITV’s diving show, Splash!, Eddie said he decided to go ahead with surgery after being warned that his back teeth would crumble as a result of his front teeth not biting together properly. The 49 year old, best known for wowing crowds at the Winter Olympics in Calgary in 1988, explained he had made the decision purely for dental reasons.
Eddie had a severe underbite which meant he suffered dental problems throughout his teenage and adult years. He revealed that he had lost eight teeth as a child.
Following the procedure in which his lower jaw was moved back and his upper jaw moved forward, Eddie’s jaw was wired for five weeks during which he lived on a soft food diet.
Eddie said the operation was not too bad and he is glad he followed his dentist’s advice. He has also had laser eye surgery to correct his vision and this has enabled him to enjoy playing sport more.
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