Some time ago we had fun discussing some of the history behind dental care such as old fashioned methods of brushing teeth, what toothbrushes were made of and the story behind the origins of the tooth fairy. With the onset of cooler weather and people spending more time indoors, November seemed like a good time share more interesting myths and mysteries on the topic of teeth. Consider this everything you ever wanted to know about teeth but were afraid to ask!
We’ll start with the little known fact that if you are so inclined, you can get a tooth (or teeth) tattooed. Yes, we said tattooed. The Brinkley Dental team can’t really imagine why you would want to do this and frankly, we don’t recommend it but it seems there are options for tattooing just about everything these days and teeth didn’t want to be left out!
As for fables, another in the long line of tales told about tooth fairies stars Ratoncito Perez, a mouse who came to claim the tooth of the King of Spain’s young son around the late 1800’s. Wishing to mark the auspicious occasion of losing his first tooth, the King commissioned a story for his son and it seems to have developed into quite the tale about a mouse with a tail! In this version, the mouse collects the teeth of children at night and it has become a widespread story shared across many Hispanic countries. Told differently depending on the country of origin, the principle remains the same – whether mouse or fairy, teeth are collected and often a little gift is left behind. (1) www.listverse.com
Back in the days before people had easy and affordable access to dental care (we fondly refer to that time as BBD – Before Brinkley Dental!) it was Barbers and Blacksmiths who provided most “dental care” to people in the community. This was because in the absence of current day licensing, training and regulations, it was Barbers and Blacksmiths who had easy access to the types of tools necessary to remove teeth. Since most dental “care” at that time really only consisted of removing diseased teeth, these two professions were well suited to the task!
Unverifiable legend has it that it was a Dentist that co-invented the machine that makes candy floss and that it was first called “fairy floss.” Trying to generate customers? Or fuel the rumor of the existence of the tooth fairy? We may never know but we thought you would like to know this fact!
Of course there is plenty more we could say on this topic but we’re running out of time and space. Whether these are myths or mysteries, truth or fiction, we will leave it up to you to decide. Stay tuned for a future edition of Dental Myths and Mysteries and in the meantime, feel free to call or visit us today and as always: ”don’t forget to be a BFF with your mouth and Brush that SMILE!”
