Teeth Whitening Through The Ages

A smile is the main form of communication throughout the world. Ever since the beginning of mankind, people have been fixated on ways to keep teeth bright, white and clean. Some of the early methods are pretty basic but our ancestors certainly paved the way for modern dental and oral hygiene. Let's see what led up to man's fixation with teeth whitening.

The first tooth brushes go back to 3000 BC which our forefathers called 'chew sticks'. They were tiny branches with a frayed piece at the one end. They rubbed these on the teeth to remove particles. The first toothbrushes with hog hair bristles were used by the Chinese in the 1400s. European traders acquired a supply of these, took them home, and gradually many countries and cultures began using hog hair toothbrushes.

Hog hair toothbrushes were used until Louis Pasteur discovered bacteria. This led to people realizing that animal bristles were the cause of gum infections. Science continued it the quest to find a more sterile substitute and success finally came when Wallace Corothers made the ground breaking discovery of nylon in 1935.

Dr West's Miracle Tuft Toothbrush was the result. A leading company, du Pont, started to market this product right through America. The public was told about the drawbacks of hog hair and the many advantages of nylon. The only problem was that the 'miracle' toothbrush was so rigid that it harmed gums. Dentists wanted nothing to do with them. Du Pont continued its efforts and 20 years later, the soft-bristled nylon Park Avenue toothbrush was launched.

1961 was a noteworthy year for oral hygiene when the Squibb Company proudly presented the electric toothbrush. Endorsed by the American Dental Association, the electric toothbrush became more refined with each passing year. The modern versions are battery powered, sonic powered, or cordless.

The first records of teeth whitening show that the Egyptians were the first to attempt this process. As far back as 2000 BC they would rub their teeth with a mix of wine vinegar and ground pumice stone. Not very pleasant! But even worse were the Romans who used human urine to whiten their teeth.

History shows that it wasn't dentists who offered teeth whitening to the public. It was in fact barbers who were often asked to extract rotting teeth. After filing the teeth, they would apply a caustic acid as a whitener. It proved to be effective but, in the process, the enamel was destroyed.

Italian dentists were the first to realize that dental discolorations could be eliminated with fluoride. In the 1840s they recommended that children be allowed to suck sweetened lozenges containing fluoride. The benefits appeared to be so positive that fluoride was added to tap water, mouthwashes and toothpaste. This was discontinued years later when it was found that fluoride was the cause of discoloration of teeth in later life.

Mankind is now living in the 21st Century and we are just as obsessed with sparkling white teeth in our efforts for that perfect smile. In fact the number of whitening or bleaching procedures done in the last 5 years has increased by a staggering 300 percent. This information was released by the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry.

Invisalign braces Toronto is an inexpensive way to straighten and enhance your smile dramatically. Cosmetic dentist Toronto offers various tooth whitening options to help you achieve the look that you want.