07/12/2021
- Halloween is the biggest candy-selling holiday, followed by Christmas, Easter, and Valentine's Day.
- 25% of adults DO NOT brush twice a day. This increases their risk of developing tooth decay by 33%.
- Roughly 75% of school children worldwide have active dental cavities.
- 90% of a bad breath smell originates in the mouth.
- People who smoke are 2-7 times more likely to develop periodontal disease than non-smokers.
- Tooth enamel is the hardest structure in the human body.
- The average human being produces 100,000 gallons of saliva during their lifetime.
- Tooth decay is the second most common disease, second only to the common cold.
- People prefer blue toothbrushes to red ones.
- Teeth start to form before we are born.
- People with periodontal disease are 2X more likely to develop heart disease.
- People who drink 3 or more cans of pop daily have 62% more tooth decay, fillings, and tooth loss than people that don't drink pop.
- The first toothbrush with bristles was made in China in 1498. Bristles from hogs, horses, and badgers were used.
- Replacing a toothbrush after illnesses helps prevent the potential for re-infection.
- It takes 43 muscles to frown. It only takes 17 to smile.
- The human tongue is as unique as a fingerprint. No two people have the same tongue print.
- Kids laugh roughly 400 times a day. The average adult laughs only 15 times per day.
- A fossilized T-Rex tooth can weigh up to a pound.
- In 200 A.D., the Romans used a mixture of bones, eggshells, oyster shells, and honey to clean their teeth.
- A snail's mouth is no larger than the head of a pin, yet it can contain over 25,000 teeth.
- A single can of soda contains 10-12 teaspoons of sugar. The recommended daily dietary intake of sugar is 4 teaspoons.
- In 1994, a West Virginia prison inmate braided dental floss into a rope, scaled the wall, and escaped!
- According to a recent survey by Time magazine, 59% of people would rather have a dental appointment than sit next to someone who is talking on a cell phone.
- In the 1800s, blacksmiths and barbers also served as dentists.
- Sports-related injuries account for millions of missing teeth per year worldwide.
- The cotton candy making machine that made widely consumed cotton candy possible was co-invented by a dentist. Before it was cotton candy, the fluffy confection was called "fairy floss."
- The earliest known dentist was Hesi-ren, an egyptian "doctor of the tooth" who lived around 3000 B.C.
- Cavities in teeth have been filled since the earliest of times with a variety of different materials, including gum, stone chips, and even turpentine resin.
- The lifespan of a taste bud is about 10 days. The five known tastes detected by taste buds are: bitter, sour, salty, sweet, and umami. Umami was identified in 1908 by a Japanese research and the chemical responsible for it is monosodium glutamate.
- The average toothbrush contains about 2500 bristles grouped into about 40 tufts per toothbrush. The tufts are folded over a metal staple and forced into pre-cored holes in the head and fused into the head with heat. The handle is made of at least two materials, usually plastic and rubber. The grips used for the handle are: precision, power, spoon, oblique, and distal oblique.
- The most valuable tooth belonged to Sir Isaac Newton. In 1816, one of his teeth was sold in London for $3,633.00, or in today's terms, $35,700.00. The tooth was set in a ring.
- North Americans spent $25 billion on candy in 2010. That is more than the gross national products of Lithuania, Costa Rica, and Mozambique combined.
- Sugar Facts: Chemical manufacturers use sugar to grow penicillin.
- In the 1800s, people who had false teeth in England ate in their bedrooms before gatherings and events at the dinner table. This unique Victorian tradition protected them against the embarrassment of having their teeth 'fall off' while dining.
