It is unlikely that historians will be able to more or less accurately answer the question of when the first toothbrush appeared, since this event occurred in those ancient times, about which only scanty and fragmentary information was preserved. It is known that a few millennia ago, people tried with the help of improvised means to solve problems associated with oral hygiene, but before the toothbrush took on the outlines so familiar to us, it went a long evolutionary path. We only note its main stages.
Toothbrushes of the ancient Assyrians
The reports of the British archaeological expedition, which conducted excavations in the territory of the ancient Assyrian kingdom in 1892, contain one curious record. It says that, among other artifacts, fossilized but well-preserved wooden sticks were removed from the earth, one end of which was pointed and the other soaked like a brush. After a comprehensive study of the find, the scientists concluded that in front of them was nothing but the samples of the first toothbrushes.
It turns out that subjects of King Ashurbanipal and other legendary lords of Assyria took care of the hygiene of their own mouths. The objects found during excavations testify to this. Their pointed ends served as a kind of toothpicks - they removed the remnants of food from the mouth. The opposite end of this “first toothbrush” was used in a very peculiar way: it was simply chewed, removing plaque with the help of coarse wood fibers.
Discoveries made in Egypt, India, Iran and other parts of the world
A little later, exactly the same devices for restoring order in the mouth were discovered during excavations of ancient Egyptian tombs. As you know, the pharaohs and other noble people were sent to the afterlife, providing everything necessary for a decent stay there. This is probably why, in burials among weapons, jewelry, magnificent dresses and other things, without which the deceased is ashamed to appear in decent society, the sticks described above, which are considered to be the first toothbrushes, were also found.
A more detailed study of the issue showed that similar devices were used in antiquity by the peoples inhabiting the territories of China, Iran and India. A mastic tree was used for their manufacture, and in some cases bronze or even gold. And completely complete surprise was the information received from the participants of the expeditions, who studied the life of the tribes living in remote areas of Central Africa. As it turned out, they are very jealous of issues of oral hygiene and to this day use exactly the same chewed sticks from one end, as the inhabitants of long-vanished civilizations.
The invention of the ancient Chinese
As mentioned above, historians can only roughly indicate the era in which people began to clean their mouths by chewing special sticks, but it is known exactly when and where the first toothbrush appeared. Reviews, or rather, evidence of this event, have been preserved in ancient Chinese annals of the late 15th century. From them it is clear that in June 1498 a certain sage had the idea to make a very close analogue of a modern brush. He attached a strip of pork bristle to a pen made of bamboo and publicly demonstrated his invention.
His "technical development" was a success with compatriots and was, as they say today, launched into mass production. Handles for brushes were made not only from bamboo, but also from bone, ceramics and various other metals. Only the hedgehog from pork bristles remained unchanged, which, incidentally, had a very large drawback: in the cold it became hard and injured the gums. For this reason, when the first toothbrushes were brought from China to Europe, the pork bristles were replaced with short cut horse hair that was more suitable for this purpose.
Historical facts that cannot be denied
To the shame of "enlightened Europe", it should be noted that the toothbrushes in it took root with great difficulty. It is known that even in the Renaissance (XV-XVI centuries.) Care for hygiene, not only the mouth, but the whole body, was considered completely unnecessary. Moreover, for a true aristocrat, it was an unworthy and even humiliating affair. The court ladies drowned out the foul smell, pouring on themselves streams of expensive perfumes (this was especially true on critical days). Men simply did not pay attention to such trifles.
Only by the middle of the 17th century did Europeans gradually learn the truth formulated by Moidodyr three centuries later, and realized that “we must, we must wash ourselves in the mornings and evenings”. Then, among them, a toothbrush imported from China and until then was considered only an exotic curiosity became widespread.
Dental brooms of the times of Ivan the Terrible
At the same time, to the credit of our compatriots, it should be noted that in Russia, personal hygiene was taken much more seriously, and much earlier than Europeans came to the conclusion that “unclean chimney sweeps are shame and disgrace”. It is enough to recall the Russian baths, so beloved among the people and categorically rejected by foreigners.
For this reason, the first toothbrushes were widespread in Russia almost a hundred years earlier than in Europe. It happened in the middle of the XVI century, during the reign of Ivan the Terrible. By the way, despite the outward resemblance to Chinese samples, they were developed by domestic craftsmen and were thin wooden sticks, at the ends of which bunches of the same pork bristles were attached. These designs were called dental brooms.
They operated in the mouths of our ancestors until the middle of the XIX century and lost their positions only after the educated Russian public was inspired by the ideas of Louis Pasteur that the moisture remaining on the brush is a favorable environment for the development of pathogenic microbes. It was decided that brushing your teeth is unsafe, and for some time the Russians abandoned this activity.
The first attempts at industrial production of toothbrushes
Meanwhile, Europe in matters of hygiene successfully made up for what it had missed earlier. In 1840, the first industrial toothbrushes appeared on the shelves of Western stores. Their manufacturer was the English company Addis. Enterprising British bought the bristles in Russia and China.
Continuing the conversation about how toothbrushes conquered the world, there are several more dates that have become landmark in this process. So, in 1938, the same British tried to replace natural pork bristles with synthetic fibers, but failed. Artificial material of the necessary elasticity at that time was not yet, and the one that was available injured the gums.
Before the first use, the toothbrush had to be softened for a long time in boiling water, but then the fibers hardened again, and everything was repeated again. As a result, the novelty was abandoned, and its release was resumed only in 1950, after the chemical industry began to produce the necessary material.
Further refinement of brush design
In the same 1938, another curious event occurred. One little-known Swedish company tried to launch the world's first electric toothbrushes, but, like the British, it failed. Potential users were curious about the new invention, but they were in no hurry to take the mechanism powered by the network into their mouths. Only in the early 60's, electric-powered reciprocating electric toothbrushes firmly conquered the market. A little later they were improved and received the well-known rotating heads today.
Scientific and technological progress, which is moving at an ever-increasing rate these days, has been reflected in developments related to the production of ever newer models of toothbrushes. Their designs sometimes surpass the wildest fantasies. For example, the Japanese company Panasonic once again surprised the world by releasing a toothbrush with a video camera mounted in it. This innovation allows the user to visually control the most inaccessible areas of the oral cavity and thoroughly clean them.
Baby brushes
Nowadays, the production of toothbrushes has become a powerful global industry in which there are leaders and outsiders. This is not surprising, since washing and brushing your teeth is a mandatory procedure that every self-respecting person performs daily. He is obliged to instill these same skills to his children. To this end, brush manufacturers produce a wide range of products designed for the smallest consumers.
An example of such care for children is the Lubby toothbrush, which is put on a finger, which is the first one to meet a man who has come to this world. It is designed for a baby aged about four months, whose teeth are barely beginning to cut. This simple device, in which the main component is the mother’s finger, can be replaced by another toothbrush - “Aquafresh. My first little tooth. " It is equipped with a pen and is very similar to those used by the parents themselves, but, unlike them, is equipped with an unusually soft pile, eliminating the possibility of damage to delicate baby gums.
Brushing your teeth into a fun game
In general, manufacturers are especially responsible for the manufacture of this type of product, since its further relation to washing and all other hygiene procedures depends on what impression the first toothbrush will make on the baby. It is understandable. The first use of a toothbrush should in no case be associated with pain or any other kind of discomfort.
Best of all, if brushing your teeth will be perceived by the child as a fun game with mom. That is why toothbrushes for the first teeth are often produced in the form of animals, birds, insects, etc. In stores, they are presented in a fairly wide range.
Types of first toothbrushes for children: sizes
As a rule, all manufacturers of this product label their products, indicating on them for what age it is intended. If there are no such marks, or their objectivity is in doubt, parents can use the recommendations below.
So, for infants up to a year, it is recommended to purchase brushes equipped with a soft silicone bristle. It can be the above-mentioned fingertips or special dental wipes available in most stores. Brushes are designed for older children, the size of which varies as follows: from a year to 2 years, the length of the head is one and a half centimeters, from 2 to 5 years - 2 cm and from 5 to 7 years - 2.5 cm.
Which brush to choose - hard or soft?
In addition to the dimensions of the brush, the degree of its rigidity is of great importance. It should also be indicated on the product packaging. For children over 1 year old, with healthy gums and strong tooth enamel, doctors recommend buying stiffer brushes, since they not only fulfill their main function during operation, but also massage the baby’s gums well. However, using them, you should be careful.
If the gums are weak and prone to bleeding, then acquiring a soft brush is the best option. In the case of doubts that parents have about the condition of the enamel and gums of the child, you should opt for brushes of medium hardness. It will be, so to speak, a win-win option.
Do you prefer natural or artificial brushes?
And finally, many parents attach great importance to what material the first children's toothbrush is made of - natural or synthetic. Oddly enough, but most dentists prefer the latter.
- Firstly (and this is important), harmful bacteria do not breed in such brushes.
- Secondly, plastic bristles, unlike natural ones, do not break and do not crumble, leaving small solid particles in the child's mouth.
- And thirdly, brushes made of artificial materials are much more durable than their natural counterparts.