Usain Bolt’s genetics gifted him the generational athleticism to win eight Olympic gold medals, but he’s still needed some dental work.
Bolt, a native of Trelawney, Jamaica, received poor dental care early in life, which led to damaged teeth at the age of 10 and general anxiety about future dental work.
“If you watch my career, I had broken teeth through my younger age that I couldn’t get fixed because it wasn’t easily accessible,” Bolt told Insider.
In Jamaica, there is less than one dentist for every 100,000 people on average, according to the World Health Organization. A study published by the Caribbean Medical Journal found that 70% of Jamaicans had a painful aching in their mouth, 65% found it uncomfortable to eat food due to the state of their dental health, and 49% were self-conscious about their teeth.
