Toothpaste: A History of Oral Hygiene

[@orboakin8074]

When I was a child in Nigeria in the early 2000s, I remember seeing my great Uncle use chewing sticks to clean his teeth. I always wondered why and he told me it was his old habit, likely because the sticks where licorice roots. He also had excellent and pearly white teeth too😊

[@sixpakshaker88]

It could have been chat. very popular stick to chew on in Africa.

[@gerardjohnson2106]

Ah, the sassafras toothbrush of my youth. It was a chewed sassafras branch used with salt and baking soda. At 73yo I'm 100% cavity free with not one tooth left in my mouth. 😊

[@irnehredna7110]

Ah yes i see the perfect way to get no cavitys is to have no teeth to get cavities

[@dcmoore8937]

In the Early 60s, they had people from the Local Dental Association School, come to all the Public Schools and give all the students an Oral Hygiene Exam and then they would BRUSH your teeth using the All New Fluoride Treatment, for your teeth! Some parents would tell the School that their kids had permission to get this done but there were a Few that didn’t give them permission to do it! Later kids were having trouble with their Teeth, their teeth were turning brown or black? No body knew what was going on with their teeth. Both the Doctor and Dentist, couldn’t figure it out! They tried to make them white but the teeth would go back to either Brown or Black. Then a Scientist figured out that they Fluoride was the problem! Then they started telling the Parents not to use Fluoride with Babies and Children till the year of 5 or 6, and to Supervise their children when they brushed their teeth! The County, that I live in, STOPPED using Fluoride in the Water that we drink!

[@markpaul-ym5wg]

​@@dcmoore8937 What country was that in,please?

[@dcmoore8937]

@@markpaul-ym5wg Michigan If I’m not mistaken, there is a Movie out about the Dangers of Fluoride and TEFON! It’s called, “Dark Water !” I’m pretty sure that was what it was called!

[@RolloTonéBrownTown]

My mom says her grandmother used to have this tooth powder and this was in USA

[@neddreadmaynard]

I'm from the UK and I always remember laughing when I saw the Simpsons episode when Lisa was shown "The Big Book Of British Smiles"😂

[@davidcooke8005]

Speaking as an old man with failing teeth, flossing is as important as brushing. Don't skimp on it, or you'll be me someday and your teeth will be history worth remembering.

[@edwardloomis887]

Served in Somalia, December 1992-May 1993 (pre-Blackhawk Down) and witnessed Somalis using chew sticks for dental hygiene. I don't know what type of wood they were, but the chewed end's internal fibers still attached spread out like diverging toothbrush bristles which I saw the users moving around their mouths. There were many things I became more thankful toward serving there, and access to relatively cheap toothbrushes was one of them.

[@arandomperson5434]

I think you’re talking about liquorice roots which also slows down tooth decay

[@impact0r]

0:47 I will hazard a statement teeth are indeed far older than mere humanity itself.

[@juliemulie1805]

The little girl sitting on the countertop assassinating her gums just set dental hygiene back 100 years!

[@KJRico93]

Bruh, I saw that and my gums nearly started hurting. Just that sawing back and forth, ugh.

[@mariebelladonna437]

I couldn't even watch that part!!

[@bobmurphy3061]

Well done and accurate. As a retired dentist I enjoyed this very much.

[@AceMoonshot]

My old man taught me how to make a toothbrush out of a willow branch. And use it with ashes and charcoal from a fire. And you if you could get it, horse hair was good to floss with.

[@AceMoonshot]

@mydixiewrecked2 Taste like root beer. Good choice.

[@AceMoonshot]

@mydixiewrecked2 Yep. Witch's aspirin.

[@berniemadoff9688]

You know, at first I was skeptical of the History Guy "schtick." The bowtie and all that. But the research, writing, varied subject matter and timeless, radio style delivery really makes a special program.

[@dannyjones3840]

Are you kidding?? Lance is my favorite youtuber! Now get back in jail, you ponzi schemer lol

[@HM2SGT]

👍The only thing missing is Cary Grant's mid/transatlantic accent & diction.

[@WildWestGal]

@@dannyjones3840 You mean 'get back in your coffin'... he died in prison 2021. 😅

[@lp-xl9ld]

One person I knew many years ago brushed their teeth five times a day: on waking up, after each meal, just before going to bed. And this person couldn't believe why very few people did that.

[@Mildeda]

I wonder what their gums look like now. My hygienist is always nagging me about gum erosion due to brushing too hard.

[@AniBAretz]

"You'll wonder where the yellow went when you brush your teeth with Pepsodent!" I remember those commercials!

[@lizj5740]

"Brush-a, brush-a, brush-a, with the new Ipana. With the brand new taste, it's dandy for your teeeeeth."

[@bigsarge2085]

Watching this documentary partly while brushing my own teeth.

[@hawkmaster381]

Commercials always use too much toothpaste on the brush; ostensibly to sell more toothpaste. You only need a pea-sized amount.

[@nik4520]

I'd like to point out that teeth date back much further than "humanity itself"

[@geoben1810]

I just like the fact that basic, good quality hygiene products are readily available and relatively inexpensive. Being able to get clean whenever you want or need to is a luxury if you've been homeless for any period of time. You don't know what you've got 'till you don't have it. 😊👍

[@mymomsaysimcool9650]

RTFM. You only need a pea size of toothpaste on the brush. Toothpaste will last much longer.

[@harleypub]

Your work is amazing, thank you for all the research you do.

[@kalrandom7387]

My grandmother who's over 100 brushes her teeth after eating or drinking anything but water. She's missing one tooth that she cracked while cracking Hickory nuts with her teeth.

[@servicetrucker5564]

My family always tells me my great grandad said if you don’t be true to your teeth they’ll be false to you

[@noneofurbusiness5223]

RDH (Registered Dental Hygienist) here. Not only does Flouride *salt* strengthen teeth, make bones stronger(yes!),but when teeth are forming makes crevices less deep, therefore less likely to get caries (cavities).

[@richardklug822]

"You'll wonder where the yellow went when you brush your teeth with Pepsodent!". It's amazing how long an effective ad slogan can linger in one's mind.

[@kayellee7202]

Thanks for planting that jingle back into my consciousness, been hearing it over and over for a couple of hours now!! How about the Ipana buck-toothed beaver? I think he even pre-dated the Pepsodent jingle.

[@kayellee7202]

Oh, for crying out loud, KZbin has a whole series of Ipana Bucky Beaver animated commercials!!!

[@michaelmcdonnell5998]

I read that after Elvis met The Beatles he turned to a friend and quipped,"Don't they have dentists in England?!"

[@ElmerCat]

Be true to your teeth, or they'll be false to you!

[@lgaines4086]

I have used baking soda as toothpaste most of my life. No cavities!

[@WildWestGal]

Baking soda and salt, a total winner!

[@rickharold7884]

I have to go brush my teeth now

[@constipatedinsincity4424]

Back in the Saddle Again Naturally!

[@keithweiss7899]

I have used toothpaste in lead tubes. I wonder how many older people did but didn’t realize it?

[@JohnWilmerding]

I remember them.

[@RandyTerrell7174]

I thought they were made of tin 🤔but I remember them.

[@goodun2974]

​@@RandyTerrell7174 , mostly tin, I think, but yeah, as a kid in the 60's I remember them.

[@JohnSmith-dh4gw]

We ran out of gas one time and Dad and I were waling back from the station with a gallon. When I commented on the weight he said "It's go lead in it."

[@oldsguy354]

​@@JohnSmith-dh4gw My doctor recently diagnosed me with the blood disease called metal fatigue. That's when the iron in your blood turns to lead in your asp. ;)

[@ScottMyersOfTheEarth]

Thank you fFor this ORAL HISTORY! =)

[@-jeff-]

It amazed me what ingredients were put in toothpastes. Everything but ground up kitchen sinks.

[@Cypresssina]

Maybe that's where they got the porcelain.

[@goodun2974]

" Movin' to Montana soon/gonna be a dental floss tycoon ...." Frank Zappa

[@scottgray493]

Oh yeah, Crest flouride test trials in Indiana during the 60's, chewed a red dye pill to show all you missed while brushing as well with two hundred 7 year olds in the schoolcafeteria...ha!

[@dawnt6791]

I remember doing that in school during the 70s as well. My mother taught me how to properly brush my teeth, so I always wondered why the school put me through that stupidity. I didn't realize until I reached adulthood that they were probably trying to compensate for all the parents who didn't actually teach their kids such basic hygeine.

[@jcm062946]

Sodium Laurel Sulfate was introduced into Pepsodent in the late 30's or early 40's and was promoted on the Bob Hope radio show as the miracle ingredient "Irium" which I suppose was made to sound vaguely radio-active.

[@kaffykathy8729]

Funny enough, right when I was brushing my teeth.

[@spookyskeptic4978]

Same.

[@dawnt6791]

My grandfather never used toothpaste. He used a toothbrush with only baking soda his entire life (poor farmer). He died at 88 with all of his own teeth sparkly white and healthy. Never had cavities or any other dental issues.

[@faelwolf1177]

That was how my mom did it, and made us kids use baking soda at least once a week in place of regular toothpaste, which she didn't trust due to it's flavorings, etc.. As I got older, I began using it full time myself, as it just seemed to do a better job.

[@killrmillr]

I would like to see a video on the history of shaving.

[@marydesmond9595]

@Amelia_Dimoldenberg. stop being a pain in the ass!

[@christopherbrunkhorst7015]

Oral History!

[@stuartriefe1740]

Good morning, fellow classmates! Greetings from Connecticut!

[@jock-of-ages73]

👋Hi, from Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

[@RetiredSailor60]

Good morning from Ft Worth TX

[@stuartriefe1740]

@@RetiredSailor60 Good morning Mr. Sanders! We must sit in the same row in class! Enjoy your day!

[@stuartriefe1740]

⁠@@jock-of-ages73 Greetings to you, Jock from Scotland! Nice to meet you!

[@WormBurger]

Greetings from smokey Alberta!

[@MBMCincy63]

I think a compilations of your video, the ones from others on the effects of tooth maintenance and practice would be great. [ now if I can recall the other sites I can do that.]

[@zach7193]

Great and fascinating topic.

[@Boraxo]

Does anybody really fill their brush completely with toothpaste like the commercials do ?

[@jrbship]

How appropriate that I’m watching this episode while getting ready for work. Which includes, naturally, brushing my teeth

[@nelsonbrum8496]

All this technology, and there is yet to be a cheeseburger flavored toothpaste...

[@cafiend]

My brother had just sent me an article on Washington Sheffield this morning.

[@noneofurbusiness5223]

Thanks for showing that Egyptian picture. Never would have thought turquoise & purple would have complemented on another.

[@BasicDrumming]

I appreciate you, thank you for making content.

[@onlygodknowswhat7595]

Such a wealth of knowledge as well as a breath of fresh air in as much as today you are chronicling. Hip hip.

[@michaelmcdonnell5998]

Please look up Pam Ayres poem,' Oh,I wish I'd looked after me teeth!' if you don't know it!

[@newshodgepodge6329]

Now, about those stubborn popcorn hulls... 😕

[@DavidD6969]

The guava twigs work well along with the leaves as a mouth wash..

[@w.m.woodward2833]

Bicuspid, I was enameled by such a great episode of THG! Enjoyed a history lesson I could really sink my teeth into, and brush up on history that deserves to be remembered. I would even denture to say it was one of his better ones this month. At first I was afraid I would just floss over another episode thinking he would paste me with more trivial history, but to my surprise it was another jaw- dropping installment of information that helped fill the cavity in my partial understanding of oral hygiene and toothpaste. 😁

[@adriannenash9852]

You must stop pun-ishing the rest of us with your biting word play! Be well from washington state USA ❤️

[@goodun2974]

By gum, you've managed to cram a row of chewy puns into one biting sentence! Be careful though; if you don't stop excessively masticating you'll likely bite on a tine!

[@goodun2974]

Some people bristle at the thought of going to the dentist. Best to give such people the brush-off before they get too close.....🤫🤭

[@madamesalamander16]

My mother is a periodontal hygienist with 50 years behind the chair. Her gospel? 1) Only floss the teeth you want to keep. 2) NO TOBACCO OF ANY FORM. 3) Drink every beverage that isn't water in ONE sitting. Sipping all day bathes your teeth continually in substances guaranteed to damage them. That goes triple for TODDLERS AND SIPPY CUPS. 4) A sonic toothbrush is the best tool you can invest in, but brushing twice a day is not negotiable. And no, tooth enamel absolutely does not re-grow or re-harden. You get to live with what you have when your adult teeth come in, no matter what alternative sources say about oil-pulling or supplements.

[@jeffbangkok]

Just thinking of flossing my teeth when this popped up. Good evening.

[@1joshjosh1]

I know you get a million comments but I would really like to see a documentary about the history of deodorant and antiperspirant. I can't imagine living without antiperspirant but I guess they stunk all the time?? Keep up the good work.

[@Call-me-Al]

Sweating isn't inherently the same as stinking: in part because of genes (people with dry earwax gene do not have as many "stinky" sweat glands (the ones that produce a lot of lipids that foul-smelling bacteria love eating), and in part because you can use more persistent deodorants that just kill those bacteria. For instance I use zink salves that kill the bacteria, my (lower than normal amount of) sweat doesn't stink. An ex of mine used Lavilin which before the formula change you only needed to apply every 4th or 5th day to be stink free despite sweating. After their latest formula change it needs to be applied more frequently. But yes, the past was smellier in general, depending on the culture. I doubt cultures that spent a lot of time in water smelled much.

[@1joshjosh1]

@@Call-me-Al I hear what you're saying and I read what you said but if I don't use antiperspirant it's a hard smell. Actually starts burning my armpits with the hard smell and that's only after a day but if I use the antiperspirant I can go three days and not notice anything. they must make a really good antiperspirant nowadays.

[@Call-me-Al]

@@1joshjosh1 that really sucks, I'm really glad antiperspirants fix your issues. When I was a teen commercial deodorants didn't help me and antiperspirants were the only that did even though they felt too unpleasant for me. Today's antiperspirants are probably even better, yeah :)

[@1joshjosh1]

@@Call-me-Al No issue. Antiperspirant is cheap. 😆. If it was expensive it would be an issue.

[@embracethemystery]

ugh, the 15:55 stock video of that girl flossing incorrectly is cringeworthy

[@constipatedinsincity4424]

Hey History Guy 👋 🤓I use to clean my teeth 😬 now I send them out to be detailed Starched and Pressed!

[@an-tm3250]

I use a wonderful toothpaste put out by Vahalla Organics made from mint & myrrh ❤❤. Not as harsh as baking soda, a very effective cleaner.

[@DeconvertedMan]

how about a history of patents - what did people do before them? :D

[@cyankirkpatrick5194]

For a long time we used Dr. Denton's tooth powder and it was good it came in a tall can with a shaker type top.

[@crhend512]

When I served In the US Military, our field rations "Meal, Combat, Individual" included a stimudent. Usually mint flavored.

[@ajg617]

The connection between bacteria in the mouth and overall health is well documented. Anyone that has had joint replacement will be taking a heavy dose of amoxicillin prior to a visit to the dentist for at least two years.

[@elesixestepa373]

Very interesting episode and thanks. But kilometers??? Where are you from?

[@MalleusDei275]

Humans are evolved carnivores, meats have no sugars or carbohydrates.

[@KeiAKWs]

Skip to 3:45 to hear the ancient toothpaste recipes

[@tomtheplummer7322]

Play hockey then less teeth 😂

[@jliller]

Something that will also help your teeth: drinking lots of water. You're basically rinsing the stuff off your teeth that if left there would contribute to tooth decay. It's not a substitute for brushing your teeth, but it helps. Disclaimer: advice from personal experience; I am not a dentist. P.S. We still have chew sticks in the USA today. They're called toothpicks.

[@MarshOakDojoTimPruitt]

thanks

[@sheldonpetrie3706]

I would never survive the fall of civilization. I have major gum issues and periondontal disease, and my oral hygiene routine is frustratingly long every day--floss, waterpik, electric toothbrush, mouthwash. Maybe a proxibrush for good measure. I also sleep with a nightguard to avoid grinding my teeth 😬

[@Mildeda]

Wow. I don't envy you.

[@noneofurbusiness5223]

@Charles Brainard Sweetie, he had gum disease (genetic), he's doing great job! Carbs associated with tooth decay. Two different things.

[@noneofurbusiness5223]

@Charles Brainard Too bad ur ignorant of medical science. Stating a fact is not condescending . . .but *you* are!

[@SkyBlue-qn8me]

Only 7% of Americans brushed their teeth in 1900? Gross!

[@v.e.7236]

~11:38 Does anybody out there actually squeeze that much paste onto their brush? Another marketing gimick too induce you to use more and then, buy more. I sure wish more folk brushed their teeth before getting on the city buses - gag! My mother got me into the habit of brushing after every meal, among other life-long hygeine practices.

[@grantgoldberg1663]

I brush once a day. I don't see what the big deal is with brushing twice a day.

[@tomtheplummer7322]

Egyptians would swish with urine. I told my dentist and hygienist. They freaked 🤯

[@leedogg6120]

When I was a kid Ipana Toothpaste ads featured Bucky Beaver. (sing) Brusha, Brusha with the new Ipana.

[@cafiend]

“You’ll wonder where the yellow went when you brush your teeth with Pepsodent!”

[@HM2SGT]

*APPLES* Nature's toothbrush if you live where you can get a hold of one every morning.😸

[@Mikidy303]

Little known fact: The toothbrush was actually invented in Oklahoma. Had it been invented elsewhere, it would have been called a "teethbrush."

[@goodun2974]

Somebody else beat you to that joke by an hour but they said that the toothbrush was invented in Alabama.

[@dcmoore8937]

I wouldn’t believe anything that NPR said! Not a good source of information! They have been Known for decades of telling people or Repeating the story of what the government wants you to believe!

[@JohnSmith-dh4gw]

I always tell it as Arkansas. I can do that because I was born there.

[@goodun2974]

@@JohnSmith-dh4gw , havung just one tooth probably predates Arkansas statehood; the Greeks have a word, fafouti, for a toothless old woman.

[@HM2SGT]

😳🤦🫣😅 I haven't heard that since I enlisted in the Navy in the mid 80s & they were issuing uniforms; we were informed that the dress whites & working uniforms now qualified us for residence in Arkansas & all states bordering the Gulf of Mexico- because we now owned several suits of clothes made of polyester.

[@trixonic6934]

I’ve never brushed my teeth but go to the dentist twice a year and my dentist always ask me what my routine is and I always have to lie after I was bashed and told I was lying once. 45 now and never had a cavity

[@LarkspeedNL]

I would love to see you do an episode on The Hope Slide

[@greggweber9967]

9:26 Probably not the soap used to wash your mouth out with if your mom heard you say that.

[@Aboz]

Be true to your teeth or they'll be false to you.

[@srl9727]

Such a shame that affordable oral health care is not available to everyone.

[@goodun2974]

It's not just a shame, I consider it borderline criminal. Gum inflammation and tooth decay tend to send the entire internal body into a state of continual inflammation and can have serious effects on your heart and vascular system. Every major industrialized nation has nationalized health care, except for here in the US. Several times a year dozens or perhaps 100 dentists get together in a convention hall and offer free tooth cleanings and cavity fillings, x-rays and sometimes more advanced work. Invariably more people show up for dental care than they can take care of in a day. It's obviously an enormous need.

[@Felto123]

My father worked for a time at Sheffield Tube. Never knew their place in history until now. New London. CT is on the map in dentistry.

[@goodun2974]

Sheffield is still there as far as I know. I did some telecommunications work there a couple decades ago and they gave me a bunch of samples of toothpaste and deodorant and such.

[@RolloTonéBrownTown]

I brush my teeth at night also. After flossing and BEFORE mouthwash

[@tomtheplummer7322]

Better than wooden teeth

[@toughenupfluffy7294]

I can't stand those minty toothpastes that burn my mouth. I used to love Pepsodent until they changed the formula to include artificial sweeteners. Typical corporation, can't leave well enough alone. They have to new and improve things to death. Pepsodent is no longer on my medicine cabinet shelf-I use Tom's of Maine.

[@goodun2974]

Tom's is good (athough I like their stick under arm-deodorant better than I like their toothpaste). I've been using Arm and Hammer baking soda and peroxide toothpaste for years but it seems they changed the formula recently as well. Of course, one can always just use plain baking soda for brushing teeth.

[@pfadiva]

@Toughen Up, Fluffy I love their fennel flavor.

[@docholiday5682]

18:33 A Truump supporter.😊

[@laurahesse2966]

Every toothpaste tube ever manufactured still exists. Is that not scary? There's something called Bites Toothpaste Bits - very eco-friendly; I'm not a spokesperson for them, but am a longtime user. Their packaging is 100% recyclable and it comes in a glass jar; one can order refills too. Every little bit helps!

[@RolloTonéBrownTown]

17:00 i actually found the man with the tiny teeth more disturbing looking than the guy with literally rotting teeth falling out. Glad i have larger teeth than that.

[@thomaslong8401]

Lots of fillings and needing glasses to see. I’m a modern guy.

[@HM2SGT]

Fluoride? What about irium?!😸 *Bob Hope and Pepsodent... that would've been a swell addition to your visual presentation.*

[@davidgilliam7505]

My grandmother died at 93 in 1980 in SW VA. She chewed tobacco snuff (dry powder). She used a "chew stick". I never understood why. I think she said "to clean her teeth ". (It was long ago.) I think she called it a "brush". She had false teeth, so .... Her son would gather the sticks for her. I wish knew what species of tree it was.

[@angieallen7363]

My grandmother used a twig off a Black Gum tree to brush her teeth. She would chew the end of the stick to fluff the fibers and then dip it into her snuff box. Then she would run it all over her teeth. She did this for as long as I can remember.

[@donnysandley4649]

My great grandmother brushed her teeth with sticks from a sweet shrub bush and never had a cavity her whole life up until she died in her 80s

[@delicate_genius]

I love this guy 😊

[@faelwolf1177]

I still have my reproduction American Civil War era toothbrush in my kit from back in my re-enacting days. Bone handle with boar bristles, surprisingly effective, even more effective than some modern toothbrushes I've used over the years. Accompanied by tooth powder in a paper packet, (you can still find tooth powder if you look hard enough, though these days it's in a plastic container usually) it got the job done, and I didn't have to suffer through "camp mouth" by the end of the event while still being historically accurate. :P

[@timberframingbear]

*even death*... Yet dental care is not considered health care

[@goodun2974]

Once or twice a year, a local convention hall hosts a *free* dental clinic with dozens, sometimes nearly 100 volunteering dentists, to do dental work for the poor and the uninsured; Not just teeth cleanings but x-rays and cavity fillings and sometimes more advanced work. These free clinics are attended by thousands of people who haven't been able to get regular dental care, sometimes having to turn people away because the lines stretch all the way out the door and around the building. The need is enormous. In the richest and most powerful country on Earth, we should be ashamed of ourselves that this is the best we can do for our populace.

[@timberframingbear]

@@goodun2974 We've something similar here: Rural Medical Clinics... They're specially equipped semis that bring multiple services to poor areas. Dentists, optomotrists, gp's, and pharmacists all show up. It's amazing. It doesn't invalidate my point that dental problems can kill you, but aren't considered a health issue that should be covered by insurance

[@rp-ze3bp]

Thank you, History Guy. What do you know about clocks or keeping time?

[@lawrencemitchell5105]

Love your work. Have you looked into the history of VanZant TX, ?

[@1977Yakko]

Brushing twice a day is something I'm generally good with though whether I brush thoroughly and long enough is another matter but I've gone cavity free for most of my life. Flossing on the other hand... I'm bad. 😁

[@goodun2974]

The only time flossing becomes uncomfortable for me is if I forget to floss for a couple of days ---- as long as I floss every day, my gums don't bleed even though I'm on blood thinners. There's also a correlation between dental health and heart disease, and having had 2 heart infections in the past, I try to take better care of my teeth these days. Teflon floss is the only type I can use due to tightly spaced teeth. ( I'm actually scheduled for a tooth cleaning tomorrow).

[@irnehredna7110]

I don't know if i have any cavitys i don't brush my teeth much but i scratch at them with my nails for some reason and i don't get tooth pain.

[@1977Yakko]

@@goodun2974 yeah, going in for a cleaning from a dentist is a great help in preventative care. When I joined the Navy back in the 90s, I could tell who the guys were who never saw a dentist. We had 8 or 9 guys who had to have teeth pulled on their first visit.

[@1977Yakko]

@Irneh Redna Maybe your diet isn't detrimental to your dental health or maybe just scratching at them regularly as you describe is just good enough.

[@irnehredna7110]

@@1977Yakko DOUBT

[@willardchi2571]

You don't need toothpaste. Brushing, flossing, and water are enough.

[@williamromine5715]

I am a little confused by dentists give specific directions about how, and how long, you should brush your teeth. If everyone followed the directions faithfully, the dentists promise healthy gums and bright decay free teeth. If that happened, the number of dentists would be reduced drastically. So is it possible that brushing twice a day and flossing once a day actually causes tooth decay and unhealthy gums? lol.

[@noneofurbusiness5223]

I appreciate ur humor, dental hygienist here. We give recommendations knowing that it is hard to change habits.

[@willardchi2571]

All you have to do is stop eating sugar and processed grains. Think: what wild animal ever needed to brush its teeth unless it was a wild animal eating out of human garbage cans? How could evolution be so incompetent as to evolve a species that quickly destroys its ability to eat by eating? Tooth decay doesn't just naturally happen. It's the result of eating foods humans were not designed to eat. If your dog gets cavities, it's from not eating the food dogs evolved to eat.

[@williamromine5715]

@@willardchi2571 My comment was meant to be "tongue in cheek". Sorry you took it seriously. However, if sugar is so bad for us, why do our bodies crave it so much?

[@willardchi2571]

@@williamromine5715 - I realized your commentw as a sarcastic one. There's nothing wrong with our bodies craving sugar if you satisfy the craving by eating whole foods that taste sweet, like fruit. But don't confuse a craving for sugar with a lifetime of eating supersweet foods made with refined sugar, which causes your brain to adjust to higher and higher levels of sugar intake to get the same sweetness kick a few berries would have given our ancestors. I've avoided eating sugar (and sugar in all its guises: "natural cane juice" and "fruit juice" and "agar nectar" etc. --all those names and more to make the consumer think it's healthy--but it's all the same poison) for about twenty years now. The only time I eat anything with sugar would be maybe 3 or 4 times a year when I might have pancakes with real maple syrup (bad as sugar for you) or honey (also bad, with the possible exception of pure unrpocessed honey from wild bee hives; I've yet to decide if that might actually be a safe form of honey and whether it's truly obtainable on the marketplace) and once a year at Christmas diner, when I gorge on blueberry and other pies. I did once open a small packet of m&m candy at Haloween time to taste one. I hated it. Then one Halloween I decided to give out small packets of cookies since those might be a little healthier for the kids. I decided to eat pack to celebrate Halloween. I slowly ate one quarter size piece. It was heavenly. The next day I decided to have another. Bliss. The next day I had to eat the three remaining cookie, and I still didn't get the same sugar rush. Now I needed more cookies to experience the pleasure of the day I ate just one. This demonstrated to me how fast one can become addicted to high levels of sugar. It was like when I used to smoke cigarettes, which I also quit 30 years ago. Smoking quickly went from a source of pleasure to just a way to relieve the misery of needing the next cigarette. Oh, and by the way, you should know that fruit juice, including orange juice, is as bad or worse than soda pop for your teeth and health (sugar doesn't just destroy teeth, it's implicated in causing diabetes, obesity, and no likely even cardiovascular disease. Search the net and youtube for Weston Price and also the modern doctor, Dr. Lustig.