Good oral care seems to have been high up on the agenda for humans since ancient times. Evidence found in Egyptian tombs dates early toothbrushes back to 3500 – 3000 BC when the Egyptians and Babylonians made toothbrushes by flaying the ends of twigs.
Around 1600 BC the Chinese developed ‘chewing sticks’, twigs taken from aromatic trees and chewed to sweeten the breath.
Fast forward many hundreds of years to the 15th century and the Chinese invented the first natural bristle brush. Bristles from a pig’s neck were attached to either bone or bamboo handles.
When this invention found its way to Europe it was adapted to use horsehairs which were much softer, or in some places feathers.
In 1780 William Addis invented what we now know as the modern toothbrush. He attached pig bristles to a specially carved handle made from cow bone.
Addis’s design was developed further in 1844 when the first three-row brush was developed.
The toothbrush didn’t become truly modern until 1938 when Du Pont invented nylon and so by the 1950’s toothbrushes had much softer bristles that were much preferred by consumers and were more hygienic.
Here at Victoria Road Dentology Horley, we love teeth! There’s actually only one thing we enjoy more, and that’s tooth facts! So here are a few of our favourites that we thought we’d share with you…
Next time you visit us for your appointment why not come armed with a tooth fact for our team? We’d love to hear them, especially if you’ve got a new one that we don’t already know!
To book your next appointment please email to info@victoriaroad.dental
|
|
|