Weird Dental Facts
Exploring the Quirky and Curious World of Dentistry

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Hillbilly in a Can
People who drink 3 or more glasses of soda/pop daily have 62% more tooth decay, fillings and tooth loss than those who abstain from these sugary drinks.
Some Things Never Change
The first toothbrush with bristles was manufactured in China in 1498. Bristles from hogs, horses and badgers were used. The first commercial toothbrush was made in 1938.
232 Extractions on One Boy!
Think you're having a bad day? Imagine having 232 teeth extracted at one time! An Indian boy suffered from an odontoma, which is a tumor that originates in tissue that forms teeth. It is commonly associated with an unerupted tooth. Let's hope he wasn't charged by the...
Does Your Toothbrush Bug You?
You should replace your toothbrush after you have an episode of the flu, a cold or other viral infections. Microbes can persist among the toothbrush bristles leading to re-infection.
Chew on This For a While
Before toothbrushes were invented people used twigs or their fingers to brush their teeth. (Neem twigs are still used in India, as they have high bactericidal property.)
Eh, What’s Up Doc?
The Greek physician Hippocrates (400 BC) suggested a toothpaste made from three mice and the head of a hare to cure toothache.
How Sweet . . .
Lippia dulcis is a Mexican plant that is 1,000 times sweeter than table sugar but doesn’t cause tooth decay and could ultimately serve as a low calorie sweetener.
Can We Get This in a Tube?
The world’s oldest known formula for toothpaste, used more than 1,500 years before Colgate began marketing in 1873, was discovered on a piece of dusty papyrus in the basement of a Viennese museum. Powder for White and Perfect Teeth Crush and combine: • One drachma*...
Squeeze Me
A third of the population squeeze their toothpaste tube from the middle. . . which thoroughly annoys the rest of the population.