A large majority of the people err in the selection of a tooth brush.
Most of the brushes in the market are too stiff and too large. . The
habitual use of such brushes is attended with bad results. Again, those
who are most solicitous to secure perfect cleanliness of the teeth are apt
to err decidedly in a too vigorous use of the brush. Many sets of teeth
have been ruined by too much or injudicious brushing. Skill and not
force, faithfulness and not muscle, are required to secure the best
results. Most persons scrub the outer surface of the teeth, as if to
clean by scouring or friction were the object in using a brush. A very
moderate application of a proper brush, with a gentle frictional powder,
is sufficient for the external surface of the teeth, and is desirable in
order to prevent the tendency to unsightly discolorations, but as a pre-
vention of decay is the least useful mode of brushing.
The brush should be moderately soft, the bristles should be long and
elastic and of uneven lengths, so as to facilitate their introduction
between the teeth. The upper teeth should be brushed downward and
the lower teeth upward, both on the outer and inner surfaces, thus
avoiding crowding the gums from the neck of the teeth while tending
to the dislodgment of any deposits between them. Once daily is quite
often enough to use a powder, if any is used at all, and the best time is
just before retiring. The morning cleansing may be properly per-
formed with the aid of a little pure, mild soap, such as old castile or a
reliable tooth soap made expressly for the purpose. After meals it will
be sufficient to use tepid water, to which has been added a few drops
of spirit of ammonia, or a little bichromate of soda, or lime water,
simply to neutralize any acidity.
The use of a quill toothpick after meals to dislodge particles of food
from between the teeth is advisable, as is also the use of a strand of
wax floss silk passed between them at least once daily. As a frictional
powder precipitated chalk is a safe and generally efficient agent. When
this is found insufficient to prevent the staining or discoloration of the
teeth, it may properly be combined in various proportions with the inside
of the cuttlefish bone, or with a smaller quantity of very finely powdered
pumice stone. In case the mouth is habitually alkaline, powdered orris
CARE OF THE HAIR. 357
root combined with the cuttlefish or pumice as above, may be substi-
tuted for the chalk.
All acid food, drinks, medicines, toothwashes and powders are very-
injurious to the teeth. If a tooth is put in cider, vinegar, lemon juice
or tartaric acid, in a few hours the enamel will be completely destroyed,
so that it can be removed by the finger nail as if it were chalk. Most
people have experienced what is commonly called teeth set on edge.
The explanation of it is, that the acid of the fruit that has been eaten
has so softened the enamel of the tooth, that the least pressure is felt
by the exceedingly small nerves which pervade the thin membranes
which connect the enamel and the bony part of the tooth. Such an
effect cannot be produced without injuring the enamel. True, it will
become hard again when the acid has been removed by the fluids of
the mouth, just as an egg shell that has been softened in this way
becomes hard again by being put in water.
Page 316
Presented as published in 1886. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
A large majority of the people err in the selection of a tooth brush. Most of the brushes in the market are too stiff and too large. . The habitual use of such brushes is attended with bad results. Again, those who are most solicitous to secure perfect cleanliness of the teeth are apt to err decidedly in a too vigorous use of the brush. Many sets of teeth have been ruined by too much or injudicious brushing. Skill and not force, faithfulness and not muscle, are required to secure the best results. Most persons scrub the outer surface of the teeth, as if to clean by scouring or friction were the object in using a brush. A very moderate application of a proper brush, with a gentle frictional powder, is sufficient for the external surface of the teeth, and is desirable in order to prevent the tendency to unsightly discolorations, but as a prevention of decay is the least useful mode of brushing.
The brush should be moderately soft, the bristles should be long and elastic and of uneven lengths, so as to facilitate their introduction between the teeth. The upper teeth should be brushed downward and the lower teeth upward, both on the outer and inner surfaces, thus avoiding crowding the gums from the neck of the teeth while tending to the dislodgment of any deposits between them. Once daily is quite often enough to use a powder, if any is used at all, and the best time is just before retiring. The morning cleansing may be properly performed with the aid of a little pure, mild soap, such as old castile or a reliable tooth soap made expressly for the purpose. After meals it will be sufficient to use tepid water, to which has been added a few drops of spirit of ammonia, or a little bichromate of soda, or lime water, simply to neutralize any acidity.
The use of a quill toothpick after meals to dislodge particles of food from between the teeth is advisable, as is also the use of a strand of wax floss silk passed between them at least once daily. As a frictional powder precipitated chalk is a safe and generally efficient agent. When this is found insufficient to prevent the staining or discoloration of the teeth, it may properly be combined in various proportions with the inside of the cuttlefish bone, or with a smaller quantity of very finely powdered pumice stone. In case the mouth is habitually alkaline, powdered orris
CARE OF THE HAIR. 357
root combined with the cuttlefish or pumice as above, may be substituted for the chalk.
All acid food, drinks, medicines, toothwashes and powders are very injurious to the teeth. If a tooth is put in cider, vinegar, lemon juice or tartaric acid, in a few hours the enamel will be completely destroyed, so that it can be removed by the finger nail as if it were chalk. Most people have experienced what is commonly called teeth set on edge. The explanation of it is, that the acid of the fruit that has been eaten has so softened the enamel of the tooth, that the least pressure is felt by the exceedingly small nerves which pervade the thin membranes which connect the enamel and the bony part of the tooth. Such an effect cannot be produced without injuring the enamel. True, it will become hard again when the acid has been removed by the fluids of the mouth, just as an egg shell that has been softened in this way becomes hard again by being put in water.