A lot of people probably think of dentistry as boring. While dentistry isn’t for everyone, we bet you’re glad we love it, right? 🙂 And believe it or not, there are some fascinating dental facts out there. Here are a few for you to chew on.

A Little History

• The first record of dentistry belongs to Hesi-Re, over 5,000 years ago in Egypt.
• The earliest recipe for toothpaste was created in Egypt, 400 AD. It included ingredients such as salt, pepper, mint, and dried iris flower.
• The bristle toothbrush was invented in China in 1498.
• During the Middle Ages of Germany, the cure for a toothache included a kiss from a donkey.
• Contrary to popular belief, George Washington’s dentures were made from human teeth, gold, hippopotamus tusk, and elephant ivory – not wood.
• A tooth belonging to Sir Isaac Newton sold for $3,633 — today’s equivalent of $35,700. This tooth is known as the most valuable tooth in history. It was sold as a ring in London in 1816.
• Lucy Beaman Hobbs became the first licensed female dentist in 1866.
• Colgate created the first commercial toothpaste in 1873. This toothpaste had the same minty taste that we are familiar with today.
• The first commercial floss was manufactured by Codman and Shurtleff in 1882.
• Irene Newman was the first dental hygienist, trained to clean the patient’s teeth in 1905.
• It wasn’t until World War II that Americans began brushing their teeth twice a day. The soldiers brought the habit home after the war.

The Biology Of The Mouth

• Your teeth started to form before you were born.
• Our teeth enamel is the hardest part of our body, even harder than our bones!
• Our tongue and tooth prints are unique to every individual, much like our fingerprints.
• Dental plaque is made up of over 300 different types of bacteria.
• Humans produce up to 1.5 liters of saliva per day.

Hmm… That’s Interesting!

• If you floss once a day for your entire lifetime, you will have used about 5 miles of floss.
• You will have spent 76 days of your lifetime brushing your teeth – assuming you brush your teeth twice a day for two minutes.
• 78% of Americans have had at least one cavity by the age of 17.
• It takes 43 muscles to frown, but only 17 to smile.
• If you are right-handed, you will tend to chew your food on the right side of your mouth. If you are left-handed, you will tend to chew your food on the left side of your mouth.
• Kids laugh around 400 times a day. Adults laugh around 15 times a day.
• Sports-related injuries are responsible for 5 million missing teeth per year. (Go Hurricanes!)