# My temporary cap is sooooooooooo loose, should I yank it, can I swallow it and die???

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-temporary-cap-is-sooooooooooo-loose-should-i-yank-it-can-i-swallow-it-and-die/647775>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [January 20, 2013, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-temporary-cap-is-sooooooooooo-loose-should-i-yank-it-can-i-swallow-it-and-die/647775 "2013-01-20T03:20:09Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![DummyGladHands](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/49beb7/32.png) [@DummyGladHands](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DummyGladHands)\
**Post date:** [January 20, 2013, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-temporary-cap-is-sooooooooooo-loose-should-i-yank-it-can-i-swallow-it-and-die/647775/1 "2013-01-20T03:20:09Z")

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Arrggh, cannot see the dentist until Tuesday. Seems like it’s dangerous! What to do?

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**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\
**Post date:** [January 20, 2013, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-temporary-cap-is-sooooooooooo-loose-should-i-yank-it-can-i-swallow-it-and-die/647775/2 "2013-01-20T03:27:12Z")

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You probably won’t die from swallowing the cap. You may want to remove it so you don’t lose it, if you’re not getting a permanent cap on Tuesday then the dentist will charge you for another temporary. If you take it off you can use denture adhesive or temporary cavity fillers available at a drugstore to re-attach it, which you may want to do nerves are exposed when it’s removed.

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**Author:** ![DummyGladHands](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/49beb7/32.png) [@DummyGladHands](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DummyGladHands)\
**Post date:** [January 20, 2013, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-temporary-cap-is-sooooooooooo-loose-should-i-yank-it-can-i-swallow-it-and-die/647775/3 "2013-01-20T03:28:53Z")

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Thanks, permanent Tuesday, can I choke on the damn thing??

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**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\
**Post date:** [January 20, 2013, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-temporary-cap-is-sooooooooooo-loose-should-i-yank-it-can-i-swallow-it-and-die/647775/4 "2013-01-20T03:33:32Z")

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How big is the cap, and how small is your throat? Did you ever choke to death from swallowing something the size of the cap sometime in the past? I’ve been in the same position, never actually swallowed a temporary, but I didn’t worry about it either.

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**Author:** ![ioioio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ioioio/32/316_2.png) [@ioioio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ioioio)\
**Post date:** [January 20, 2013, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-temporary-cap-is-sooooooooooo-loose-should-i-yank-it-can-i-swallow-it-and-die/647775/5 "2013-01-20T03:56:57Z")

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Just so you know . . . if you don’t leave the cap on, the tooth can shift, and the permanent cap may no longer fit. I found this out the hard way.

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**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\
**Post date:** [January 20, 2013, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-temporary-cap-is-sooooooooooo-loose-should-i-yank-it-can-i-swallow-it-and-die/647775/6 "2013-01-20T03:57:02Z")

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be sure to reply after Tuesday or you will have people wondering.