Dr. Arthur Kezian
Dr. Narine TashjianWhat is a toothbrush?
In this material we are going to present everything there is to know about the toothbrushes. A general definition of the toothbrush would be the following: it is a small type of brush that is used in order to clean teeth. In order to obtain the best result it is advisable to use toothpaste. This paste is usually made with fluoride and is put on the toothbrush because it has an excellent cleaning effect. Dentists usually advise people to use a type of toothbrush, which is softer because the harder ones can have a damaging effect for the enamel and they can also irritate the gums.
The History of Toothbrush
The toothbrush is the offspring of other devices used for cleaning teeth along the centuries. Since ancient times people tried to clean their teeth by using a variety of things. In many cultures it is specified that people used to clean their teeth by means of twigs or even pieces of wood that were rubbed against teeth. In more recent times another method of cleaning teeth appeared to be common and it consisted of rubbing baking soda or even chalk against the teeth. The first toothbrush was produced by William Addis of Clerkenwald, England in 1780. The firs person who has ever used a toothbrush was H. N. Wadsworth. This happened in 1850 in the United States and the production of the brush started thirty-five years later. The thing was made of a bone (used as a handle) that had holes bored into it where there were attached Siberian Boar hair bristles. Only after the World War II the idea of brushing teeth gained some interest in USA. This happened because the US soldiers had as a regular duty to keep their teeth clean and thus, they brought this habit back home when the war ended. With time, the natural bristles were gradually replaced by other materials, generally nylon. This first happened in 1938 and the one who invented it was Dupont. In time there has been engineered the electrical toothbrush which was first introduced by the Squibb Pharmaceutical Company with the occasion of the celebration of the centennial of the American Dental Association in 1959. In the year 2003 the toothbrush was named the number one thing that Americans can’t live without.
The Electric Toothbrush
The electric toothbrush is the ultimate invention in what the toothbrush industry is concerned. The first idea of developing brush of this kind appeared in 1939 in Switzerland. The finite product didn’t get on the market till the 1960’s. In 1961 the General Electric Company introduced on the market a rechargeable cordless toothbrush that had an up and down movement when activated. In 1987 was invented the first rotary action toothbrush and it soon appeared on the market for the general use. This mechanism is used today by a large variety of models and it is proved to be more effective than the standard toothbrush.
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