February in Dental History
February 1-28:
National Children's Dental Health Month
This annual observance of children's dental health began as a one-day event in Cleveland, Ohio on February 3, 1941. It seems appropriate to report this month on a recent survey, which asked teenagers about the one invention they couldn't live without. They didn't pick the automobile, personal computer, cell phone or microwave oven. The winning invention was . . . the toothbrush.
February 1:
Chinese New Year, "Year of the Sheep"
The Chinese were among the earliest practitioners of dentistry. By the second century, they were using arsenic to relieve toothache pain. They had developed a silver amalgam for fillings by A.D. 659, more than a thousand years before dentists in the West.
February 2:
Groundhog Day
Legend has it that if a certain groundhog, which resides in a burrow in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, sees his shadow on this day, we will have six more weeks of winter. Groundhogs are actually woodchucks, a type of rodent. They have four large incisor teeth for biting off vegetation and gnawing through roots. These teeth keep growing throughout the groundhog's life because constant usage keeps wearing them down. They also have 18 chewing teeth. To find out more about the legend of Punxsutawney Phil, go to www.groundhog.org.
February 14:
Valentine's Day
What should you do if your beloved gives you a box of chocolates? Well, chocolate isn't as bad for your teeth as you might think. Research indicates that chocolate promotes less tooth decay than do crackers, raisins or granola bars. The cocoa butter in chocolate melts quickly in the mouth, so it doesn't have as much of a chance to cause cavities. Chocolate also contains a component that blocks the production of plaque, the first stage of tooth decay. A word of caution, however. Chocolate is laden with sugar, which plays a role in tooth decay. Your best bet is to enjoy your gift in moderation - and brush afterwards.
February 22:
George Washington's Birthday
The Father of Our Country was born this day in 1732, which was probably the last time that he was free from dental pain. Practically everyone "knows" that Washington lost almost all his teeth before becoming president (true) and that he wore wooden dentures (a myth). Washington did have many pairs of non-wooden dentures, made from materials such as gold, hippopotamus tusk, elephant ivory, and human teeth.