Dentistry and Human progress

My dream is that, one day, I will be able to write a history of dentistry -- which, despite its failures and misuse throughout time, is on the whole a very concrete indication of human progress -- of science/medicine used for the improvement of mankind on a very basic level.

I'm always struck by "how good" Americans' teeth look when compared to other countries I've lived in. This includes Great Britain (where I lived in the early eighties); the average Brit's teeth then confirmed my belief that the Declaration of Independence was indeed a significant step forward in human history.