Amazing n Funiiest Fact about teeth

Did You Know? Fun Teeth Facts…

All vertebrates have teeth, meaning all creatures with a backbone. The number, size, shape, and positioning of teeth vary by species, but human and animal teeth have the same basic makeup: a mixture of calcium, phosphorus, and mineral salts. If it’s challenging to get your family members interested in oral health, try some fun and some surprising facts.

• Humans have 32 teeth. Eight of them are teeth that tear or cut, and they’re called incisors. Remember that they’re for food, though. We see too many sad patients who used their now broken teeth to break a tag off a new pair of clothes, to open a bag of their favorite snack, or to chew the cap of their preferred pen to smithereens. Our teeth are strong, but they can break if they’re misused.
• Dogs rarely get cavities because the pH of their saliva is very high. This prevents demineralization, a process that wears away at tooth enamel. Fluoride helps prevent and in some cases repair demineralization in people, which is why we offer fluoride treatments in our office.
• Elephants have molars that can weight up to 10 lbs, and that’s what we call a holy molar! Elephant teeth fall out approximately every 10 years, with a new set growing in afterwards. This can happen up to six times over the course of an elephant’s life! We humans only get two sets of teeth, so we have to be more careful about the way we take care of ours.
• Blue whales are larger than elephants – in fact, they’re the largest mammal on earth – but their diet consists exclusively of tiny shrimp because they don’t have any teeth. Next time you bite into a crispy, juicy apple or enjoy some corn on the cob, consider yourself lucky to have the chompers for it.
• Hippos are tricky. When they open their mouths, it might look like they have only four teeth, but they actually have 40! Eight more than most of us.
• Giant Armadillos (yes, that’s a real creature) have the most teeth of all animals. We’re talking about as many as 100 teeth! Can you imagine flossing if you had that many teeth??
• Snails aren’t an animal but they have, oh you know, approximately 25,000 teeth! They’re located on their tongues, though, so you have to know where to look if you’re a dentist and one happens to come into your office for a checkup.
• Calculate 1 percent of the amount of teeth that a snail has and you’ll get the number of teeth most dolphins have: around 250. They get one set for life, but their teeth do grow new layers to help keep them strong.
• Pocket gophers’ teeth grow like finger nails. As much as 15 inches in a year! Is that cool or kind of gross? Maybe both.                                                                     
Below are 10 fun facts about teeth we thought you’d enjoy learning about.
1. The enamel on the top surface on your tooth is the hardest part of your entire body.
2. Teeth start to form even before you are born—milk teeth or baby teeth start to form when the baby is in the womb, but they come through when the child is between 6-12 months old.
3. Humans use four different types of teeth (incisors, canine, premolars, and molars) to cut, tear and grind their food.
4. Humans have only two sets of teeth in their entire lifetime—baby teeth and permanent teeth. Once you have your permanent teeth, make sure you take good care of them.
5. No two people have the same set of teeth—your teeth are as unique as your fingerprint, so be proud of your unique set of teeth.
6. Your mouth produces over 25,000 quarts of saliva in a lifetime—that’s enough to fill two swimming pools. Saliva has many uses, including assisting you with your digestion and protects your teeth from bacteria in your mouth.
7. An average person spends 38.5 days brushing their teeth over their lifetime.
8. Many diseases are linked to your oral health, including heart disease, osteoporosis, and diabetes.
9. One third of your tooth is underneath your gums—that means only two thirds of your tooth’s length is visible.
10. If you get your tooth knocked out, put it in milk and hold it in your mouth—this will help your tooth to survive longer. Make sure you see a dentist right away.

    Did You Know?

    Interesting Facts about Teeth and Dentistry

    • The average American spends 38.5 total days brushing their teeth over a lifetime.
    • People who drink 3 or more glasses of soda each day have 62% more tooth decay, fillings and tooth loss than others. Put down the pop and sports drinks and pick up some nice fresh water instead.
    • Tooth enamel is the hardest substance in the human body. However, we do not recommend that you use your pearly whites to open bottle caps!
    • If you don’t floss, you miss cleaning 40% of your tooth surfaces. Make sure you brush and floss twice a day!
    • If you're right handed, you will chew your food on your right side. If you're left handed, you will tend to chew your food on your left side.
    • Every year, kids in North America spend close to half a million dollars on chewing gum.
    • More people use blue toothbrushes than red ones.
    • Like fingerprints, everyone's tongue print is different
    • The average woman smiles 62 times a day. The average man smiles about 8 times a day.
    • Kids laugh around 400 times a day, adults just 15 times a day.
    • Giraffes only have bottom teeth.
    • Just like finger prints, tooth prints are unique to each individual.
    • The average person only brushes for 45 to 70 seconds a day, the recommended amount of time is 2-3 minutes.
    • 78% of Americans have had at least 1 cavity by age 17.
    • 1882 was the year commercial floss was first manufactured.
    • The most valuable tooth belonged to Sir Isaac Newton. In 1816 one of his teeth was sold in London for $3,633, or in today's terms $35,700. The tooth was set in a ring! (source: Guinness World Records 2002).
    • More than 300 types of bacteria make up dental plaque.
    • Dogs have 42 teeth, cats have 30 teeth, pigs have 44 teeth, and an armadillo has 104 teeth.
    • A snail's mouth is no larger than the head of a pin, but it can have over 25,000 teeth!
    • The elephant grinds its molars and grows new ones. This happens six times in a lifetime! An elephant's molar is about 7 inches square and can weigh over 6 pounds
    • The Blue Whale is the largest mammal on earth, but it eats only tiny shrimp because it has no teeth.
    • The Crocodile Bird flies into the open mouth of a crocodile and cleans the crocodile's teeth!
    • There are 10-12 teaspoons of sugar in a single can of soda.

    Interesting Facts about Dental History

    • In 1866, Lucy Beaman Hobbs became the first licensed female dentist.
    • In 1986, the winner of the National Spelling Bee won by spelling ODONTALGIA (which means toothache)
    • The average amount of money left by the tooth fairy in 1950 was 25 cents. In 1988 it was $1.00, the going rate now is $2.00.
    • The earliest dentist known by name is Hesi-Re. He lived in Egypt over 5,000 years ago.
    • The first toothbrushes were tree twigs. Chewing on the tips of the twigs spread out the fibers, which were then used to clean the teeth.
    • Ancient Greeks used pumice, talc, alabaster, coral powder or iron rust as toothpaste.
    • George Washington never had wooden teeth. His dentures were made from gold, hippopotamus tusk, elephant ivory and human teeth!
    • In 1905, Dental Assistant Irene Newman was trained to clean teeth. She became the first Dental Hygienist.