what did romans use to clean their teeth
twigs
title: Dentifrice text: Ingredients that were sometimes added were honey, ground myrrh, nitre, salt, and hartshorn; pounded pumice was a more dubious article, though Pliny the Elder says "dentifrices, too, are prepared from it". Tooth powder was used to clean and whiten teeth, to fix them when loose, to strengthen the gums, and to assuage toothache. The earliest mention of tooth care among the Romans comes from a poem: "Calpurnius, I greet you with some quick verse. I sent you, just as you asked me to, clean teeth and a bright smile, the product of Araby, a little powder, noble, fine and whitening, title: Urine text: urine has been used for the cleaning properties of the ammonia therein. In pre-industrial times urine was used – in the form of "lant" or aged urine – as a cleaning fluid. Urine was also used for whitening teeth in Ancient Rome. Urine was used before the development of a chemical industry in the manufacture of gunpowder. Urine, a nitrogen source, was used to moisten straw or other organic material, which was kept moist and allowed to rot for several months to over a year. The resulting salts were washed from the heap with water, which was evaporated to allow title: Cosmetics in ancient Rome text: lipstick appears in earlier civilizations, no such evidence has materialized to indicate that the Romans ever colored their lips. The only evidence for painting nails comes from a red dye they imported that was produced from an Indian insect. Generally only the wealthy cut their nails, as they used barbers to clip their nails short, following the contemporary practice for good hygiene. Although oral hygiene was nowhere near today’s standards, white teeth were prized by the Romans, and so false teeth, made from bone, ivory and paste, were popular items. Ovid shed light on the way white teeth were viewed title: Tooth brushing text: 24 hours. Poor dental health has been associated with heart disease and shortened life expectancy. As long ago as 3000 B.C., the ancient Egyptians constructed crude toothbrushes from twigs and leaves to clean their teeth. Similarly, other cultures such as the Greeks, Romans, Arabs and Indians cleaned their teeth with twigs. Some would fray one end of the twig so that it could penetrate between the teeth more effectively. Modern day toothbrushing as a regular habit became prevalent in Europe after contact with the Muslim world in Africa and Asia where the people's teeth remained healthy into old age. It title: Dentifrice text: components are an abrasive, binder, surfactant and humectant. Other ingredients are also used. The main purpose of the paste is to help remove debris and plaque with some marketed to serve accessory functions such as breath freshening and teeth whitening. Tooth powder is an alternative to toothpaste. It comes in both fluoride and non-fluoride versions. Tooth powder was generally used among the Romans. Roman dentifrices used a variety of substances, such as the bones, hoofs, and horns of certain animals; crabs; oyster and murex shells; and egg-shells. They were reduced to a fine powder, sometimes after having been previously burnt.