Teaching your kids more about their teeth and dentistry is a great way to get them excited about brushing, flossing, and visiting their dentist. Chances are, however, that you don’t happen to have a list of tooth facts off the top of your head. Therefore, we have compiled a list of fun tooth facts for you to share with your child:
- Teeth are not bones because they are composed of enamel and cannot heal themselves or growth back like bones do. Tooth enamel is the outer covering of your tooth and it is the strongest substance in your body. However despite its strength, it can still be damaged by decay. Once a tooth has a cavity, it cannot repair itself and must be repaired by a dentist with a dental filling.
- Tooth decay is considered to be an infectious disease because it is caused by bacteria and can pass from person to person. In children, tooth decay is the number one chronic childhood disease.
- Kids never had problems with tooth decay until sugar started to become part of their diet. Now, sugar is one of the leading causes of cavities in children since it feeds bacteria and creates a bad acid that damages the outer layer of your teeth.
- On average, dental plaque contains over 300 species of bacteria. After brushing your teeth, new plaque will start to form about 4 hours after, which is why brushing twice a day is so important. When you have bad breath, it is actually the bacteria that you are smelling.
- Before traditional toothbrushes existed, people used toothbrushes with bristles made out of hog, horse, or badger hair. The first toothbrush made with the nylon bristles we use today wasn’t invented until 1938.
- The very first toothpaste was invented by the Ancient Egyptians. It was actually a powder that consisted of oxen hooves, myrrh, pumice, and burned eggshells. Back then, they would mix this powder with water and use it to clean their teeth.
- People who are right-handed generally chew with the right side of their mouth, while people who are left-handed generally chew with the left side of their mouth.
- Your teeth are unique to you and no one in the entire world has teeth that match yours. In fact, teeth can be used to identify people just like fingerprints.
- A single elephant molar is equal to over 500 human teeth in size and weight. Each molar weighs about 8-10 lbs and is one foot across.
- Snails have 25,000 teeth that are all located on their tongue, sharks can have up to 300 teeth, a dog has 42 teeth, and people have 32 teeth.
- Children laugh and show their teeth 26 times more than adults.
- In your lifetime, you will produce 25,000 quarts of saliva, which is enough to fill two entire swimming pools! Saliva is important because it helps to keep your mouth clean and protects your tooth enamel. Additionally, food must dissolve in saliva for the 10,000 taste buds on your tongue to taste it. Without saliva, food would literally have no taste.
