Ancient Civilizations And Oral Health

History is so boring and yet fascinating in its own way. Notwithstanding how much we dislike studying history, we love to dig out a good story about ancient times which sheds light on many fascinating fats.

Today, oral health is a topic of undeniable importance. We do many things to keep our teeth clean and healthy and use many products to prevent oral health issues such as bad breath. You are very much mistaken if you think that this is a recent trend. Historical data proves that oral health issues were treated as far back as 5000 BC.

The concept of “tooth worms” which is used by us for generations to get children to brush their teeth has its roots in a Sumerian text which describes “tooth worms” as the cause of dental decay.

Historical evidence relating to dentistry can be found from other ancient civilizations around the world as well.Ancient Egyptians, as we all know, were good at many things including medicines. An ancient Egyptian medical text which is believed to have been written before 3000 BC has instructions on how to treat wounds in the mouth. The earliest dental surgeries which are believed to have taken place between 2500 BC and 3000 BC involved treating cavities and removing teeth. However, visiting the dentist would have been a lot scarier those days as there are no evidence of pain killers being used. Looking for a professional dentist you can go here for more details.

What is even more fascinating is that the ancient Egyptians invented toothpaste around 5000 BC.

Moreover, the earliest known reference to a dental practitioner is found on an Egyptian tomb.

Even in the early days looking pretty was a priority. The pioneers of this was the Etruscans. Even though the dental practices of the Etruscan civilization pale in comparison to that of the ever so mighty Egyptians, the fact that they used a different method to decorate their teeth with gold bands has impressed the historians. So, who knows, may be Etruscans were as obsessed with teeth whitening Albert Park as we are.

Some civilizations like the Greeks seem to have shunned removing teeth for one reason or the other. They, in contrast to the Egyptians, have focused more on relieving pain caused by issues such as tooth decay rather than removing the rotten teeth. A mummy which was found in the recent past holds ample proof of how much trouble the Greeks have gone through to cure cavities and relieve pain without pulling out teeth.

The Chinese also had a well-developed medical and surgical systems. They not only performed surgeries to remove rotten teeth or use medicines to cure other oral health issues, but also used advanced scientific observation methods to deduce other illnesses by looking at the changes in teeth, bad breath, etc.

So, appreciate the fact that you are born in this era when dentistry is so developed that you may not even feel anything when having a rotten tooth removed.