I must admit that when I switched from pre-med to pre-dent some of my friends and family were not very understanding. My grandma was like, "Well think about it (switching to dentistry), because you've already taken all of those difficulty chemistry and biology classes and you just don't want all of that hard work to go to waste." Meaning, she really didn't thing dentists needed any chemistry or biology. It's a common perception from what I've experienced.
The way I look at it is dentists need to give MD's the respect they deserve. Sometimes pre-dents try to tear down MD's to sort of lift up their own profession (I'm guilty of this at times). But really if you have experienced what MD's do on a daily basis, they earned their way into med school, survived residency, and now they have to be human machines that crank out medical care for 60 hours a week.
The truth is that there are many things that make dentistry "easier" in my opinion: fewer hours, no weekends or holidays, more autonomy, no life-and-death...I could go on. Just because dentistry is not considered to be the "most prestigious" or "most challenging" or "highest paying" profession in the world doesn't matter to me. On the other hand...if you are the type of person that really thrives on public opinion, perhaps one should consider a career in politics. Nothing is a greater guage of your public approval than elections.
I'm not so concerned with public opinion. I've got my little dream of owning my own practice, providing great care, relieving pain, creating friendships, and having the free time and income to enjoy life away from work. Nowhere in my future goals in life to I need to be known as the smartest in the class, the highest paid, nor the most overworked professional.