By Andrew CristiDentist DR. DUSTIN COHEN Has Hollywood Smiling From Ear To Ear!
In Tinsel Town, a perfect white smile is almost as important as killer acting chops, and it seems as though every celebrity is lining up to get their pearly whites perfected by Dr. Dustin Cohen- owner of The Practice|Beverly Hills. Young spirited and completely in the know on what’s hot, Dr. Cohen and his wife, Dr. Stacey Cohen, have designed a practice that is unique, upscale, and fun, offering the best in dental hygienic care and cosmetic procedures- and the biggest names in Hollywood are swiftly flocking to the dynamic dental duo.
From Emmy Award winners like Sarah Paulson, to singing sensations like Jesse McCartney, to sports legends like tennis pro Jimmy Connors and skateboarding superstar Chad Muska, to revered icons such as Sylvester Stallone, Dr. Cohen is treating the best of the best when it comes to Hollywood’s elite and making sure that they have perfect teeth in order to sink them into their next big role. The beautiful Tricia Helfer from “Lucifer” is yet another star that owes her radiant smile to the beloved dentist, as does fitness expert Jillian Michaels who now has even more to grin about! And, always anything but typical or ordinary, the creative Dr. Cohen has even created permanent porcelain fangs for rapper Ninja of “Die Antwoord”!
But, what really sets Dr. Cohen and his practice apart from other dentists more than anything else is his tremendous dedication to health and wellness. It’s no secret that Los Angeles is known for being heavy on the health hacks, and when it comes to this intuitive doctor, he has made sure to carefully do his research. Not only does Dr. Cohen only use mercury-free, BPA-free and triclosan-free materials, but he also uses a CariVu camera that is completely 100% radiation free as well- and with stars and clientele that are extremely hung up on the latest health trends, this holistic friendly dentist that puts extra care into the mouth-body connection is always a surefire hit!
But, knowing all the latest health-trends aren’t the only fads that Dr. Cohen keeps up with- the stylish practitioner is as known for his extensive sneaker collection as he is for keeping stars in white teeth! In fact- the sneaker lover’s passion goes so deep that he not only named his son Jordan after his favorite brand, he also got a tattoo of the sneaker on his arm- done by legendary tattoo artist Dr. Woo (who in turn Dr. Cohen made a specialized crown with a “W” on it for!)
With an ever-growing celebrity client list, and innovative practices that are changing the face of dentistry, Wingman knew we had to sit down with the Beverly Hills hot-shot and hear all about his amazing practice, his incredible clients, and of course, talk about some sneakers! Read below for what Dr. Cohen had to say!
WINGMAN MAGAZINE: So, talk about being a dentist to the stars! Who are some of your clients that we would know, and how long have you been in practice?
- DUSTIN COHEN: It’s pretty exciting practicing dentistry in our office in Beverly Hills! We love always getting to meet interesting people that are doing big things in their careers. It’s challenging working on people that have a very public persona because you want to make sure that their smiles are looking as perfect as possible. And we always want to provide an ultra-high level of customer service to our patients, so that means accommodating them in any way possible. We are very detail-oriented people, so we stress out over things most people would never even notice. But we believe that’s why our patients choose to trust us with their care. Some of our more high-profile clients include Sylvester Stallone and his very talented family, Jillian Michaels, the world famous fitness guru, Sarah Paulson and Leslie Grossman- both currently on “American Horror Story: Cult” on FX, Alia Shawkat, who is currently on “Search Party” on TBS, Singer Jesse McCartney, Tennis legend Jimmy Connors, Weird Al Yankovic, Jennifer Finnigan from “Salvation” on CBS, Skateboarding legend Chad Muska, Tricia Helfer from “Lucifer” on Fox, Rapper/Actor Ninja from the band “Die Antwoord” and the movie “Chappie- and that’s just a few! My wife & I have been practicing dentistry since 2012. We have gone through extensive training in all aspects of dentistry with a focus on high-end cosmetic dentistry. We both also earned Master in Business degrees prior to meeting each other in dental school.
WINGMAN MAGAZINE: Your practice is different from others in the fact that you only use Mercury-free, BPA-free and Triclosan-free materials. You are very into holistic practices and focusing on the mouth-body connection, right? How else does your practice differ?
COHEN: Here in Southern California, there is a huge emphasis on health and wellness. In order to give our patients the care they truly want, we have raised our standards by only working with the most biocompatible dental materials around that still hold up to the harsh environment of the mouth. Most patients wouldn’t even know to ask about BPA or Triclosan in their fillings and toothpaste. That is why we have taken it upon ourselves to do the research and educate the patients on what is going into their bodies. We also do our best to educate our patients about the mouth-body connection because often times people think of the dentist as something separate from the rest of medicine. The gums and teeth are the only areas in the body that can’t fully heal themselves. So when there is an infection in your mouth, a tremendous amount of inflammation arises due to immune cells hopelessly trying to fight off the infection. This draws immune cells away from other areas of the body that truly need them, leaving them more susceptible to disease. We have a great new tool that definitely sets us apart from most offices, that is our CariVu camera. The CariVu camera is a 100% radiation-free way to see inside your teeth! We are the first and only dentists in Beverly Hills that have begun to utilize this technology. The camera uses near-infrared light to shine through the teeth and then take a photo. This technology clearly shows areas of concern like fractures and cavities that can’t always be seen by the eye or on X-rays! It gives us a view of the tooth that was never possible before, and our examinations are now more thorough than ever before.
WINGMAN MAGAZINE: When did you know you wanted to be a dentist?
COHEN: I wanted to be a dentist since the age of 8! Seriously. My orthodontist back in Florida was “the guy” to go to in the area. After seeing his giant office with video games and the Ferrari he drove, I was sold that this was the profession for me! [Laughs] Luckily, I was a science nerd anyway, so dentistry was a perfect path. But in my first year in dental school we had our first orthodontics lecture, and after that, I decided that general and cosmetic dentistry sounded better!
WINGMAN MAGAZINE: One of your clients, Sarah Paulson, was recently on the show “Feud: Bette Vs Joan” where they showed that Joan Crawford had what was called “The Buckle” where actresses would get teeth pulled in order to have higher cheekbones! Have you ever witnessed anything like that?
COHEN: Oh man, I just saw that scene! Dentistry has had some seriously dark days. Thankfully, dentistry is in a much better place and nobody is pulling teeth for more prominent cheek bones these days. Today there is a much more conservative procedure that gives you the same effect that Joan was going for in that scene; it’s called a Buccal Lipectomy, or Buccal Fat Pad Removal. They make a tiny incision inside your cheek and tease out the fat inside. Very minimal discomfort or downtime. I have performed some very unique cosmetic procedures like permanent porcelain fangs for Ninja of “Die Antwoord,” and a white gold lateral tooth for a very creative patient of mine, but all of that is reversible if necessary!
WINGMAN MAGAZINE: You also work with your wife, Dr. Stacey Cohen. How is that partnership?
COHEN:The partnership with my wife Dr. Stacey is amazing. I couldn’t imagine being able to achieve what we have achieved so far if we weren’t a team. We started the partnership in the second month of dental school when we started dating. We sat together in every class and lived next door to each other for all four years of dental school. Spending that much time with someone in some of the most stressful times of our lives solidified the idea for me that Stacey was “The One.” We work very well together because we are quite different, but complement each other nicely. And since we both have a strong business background, we possess an understanding of business that few other healthcare professionals do. I generally come up with the big grand ideas for where I want our business to go. Then she comes in and executes it all. She is more practical and much more organized than I am. She basically makes it all happen. Since having our son Jordan and now being pregnant with our daughter, she is limited in her clinical time at the office. But I am able to take on the majority of the day-to-day operations at the office. I don’t think there is any other dental partnership like us anywhere.
WINGMAN MAGAZINE: Aside from being an excellent dentist, you’re also an avid sneaker-head. How many pairs of sneakers would you say you have, and do you have a favorite brand?
COHEN:I’ve loved sneakers since I was about 3 years old. I remember getting some glow-in-the-dark Converse sneakers and running home to look at them in the bathroom with the lights off. We just moved into a new townhouse, so I had the pleasure of going through about 100 pairs of shoes during packing. I am definitely not a true collector, since I wear most of my shoes at one time or another. In dental school I purchased about 30 pairs of Chad Muska’s Supra Skytops in different colors. I lived across the street from school and would go home at lunch to change into a second pair for the afternoon classes. I wanted to be unique since everyone wore the same color scrubs. And now Chad is my patient- crazy! As far as a favorite brand, it would definitely be Nike/Jordan. The amount of Nike boxes in my closet is ridiculous.
WINGMAN MAGAZINE: You love sneakers so much that one of your patients, a tattoo artist named Dr. Woo, tattooed a sneaker on your arm- and in return, you gave him a custom crown with the letter “W” on it. Tell how that came about!
COHEN: [Laughs] Yes, this is all true. A few of my patients had these amazing tattoos and I kept hearing the name Dr. Woo. After doing my research and checking out his Instagram page, I knew I basically had to get a tattoo from him. I had never seen a tattoo that I wanted on me forever, but after seeing his work, I realized he could make anything look great in black and grey. So I emailed him about wanting a tattoo and mentioned I was a dentist. He ended up coming into the office for a check-up and we got along really well. My first tattoo was an Air Jordan III sneaker to represent my son Jordan being born. When Dr. Woo needed a crown redone, we were able to get him into our lab to tattoo a “W” into the porcelain. You can see a picture of it on our instagram page; @thepracticebeverlyhills. We like doing unique things and providing customer service that goes above and beyond expectations. we are definitely not your average dental office!
With a celebrity clientele that includes some of the biggest musicians, sport stars, and Emmy winners, and treatments that invigorate the industry, Dr. Cohen can definitely say that again!
For more information on Dr. Dustin Cohen and his practice, visit his website; www.thepracticebh.com
Mike McCarthy