How much do you spend annually on buying clothes, purses, shoes and fashion accessories? If you’re like most women, the answer is “a lot.” The average woman in the U.S. today spends around $6,000 on her wardrobe—and only $240 on her smile!

Sure, brushing and flossing after every meal are important. So are those twice yearly visits to your dentist for professional cleaning and checkups. But when it comes to investing in great fashions and accessories, an improved smile beats a Hermes purse, Chanel pumps or Gucci sunglasses any day of the week!

Cosmetic dentistry costs money, as well it should. After all, dentists study for many years just to be able to make peoples’ smiles more beautiful, let alone the fact that opening and running an office is an expensive undertaking. All that high tech equipment dentists use nowadays allows cosmetic dentists to do amazing things in short order and with very little discomfort.

Yet many women who don’t hesitate for an instant to invest in a gorgeous Christian Dior handbag that costs $1,500 or an Armani suit that costs $5,000, balk at spending money on investing in a gorgeous smile.

Your smile is arguably the most important investment you’ll ever make in your appearance. So the next time you feel tempted to splurge on an expensive new outfit or accessory, remind yourself that the items that tempt you now will probably be out of style next year—and spend the money improving your smile, instead!