toothbrushing in Paris

The picture showed the first "how to use toothbrush" ever recorded

Just like the title said, “How much would you like a toothbrush?“, what i want to discuss now is about toothbrush :D

Every people all around the world, in the morning right after waking up from their good night sleep, will always do the same routine, brushing their teeth with toothbrush. But, do they know about the history of toothbrush? hmmm.. Ok, i think some people knows about the history, but i doubt it that the informations about history reached 60% of total world population.. hehehehe..

So, brushing teeth is an activity that human do since thousands years ago, that made toothbrush also has became one of human’s oldest private hygiene tools. Early founded toothbrush was made from 3.000 BC, made of twig with a frayed end called a chewstick. First human using that old toothbrush was by chewing it. At the moslem culture, it was called Siwak or Miswak, it was been said that The Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) also use the siwak to brush his teeth and now became one of the sunnah for all moslem to brush their teeth using siwak.

Another story came from Japan. Year 1223, an old Zen Master named Dōgen Kigen saw some monks in China used the horse tail to clean their teeth. The Chinese was believed to be the first to create real toothbrush in 1400 AD. Instead of using nylon and plasticine to be the brush for the toothbrush, early Chinese toothbrush used bamboo as the toothbrush grips and Siberian wild boar’s hairs for the brushes.

Modern “Old” ToothBrush Productions

Modern well-known toothbrush was firstly massive produced by English man named William Addis in 1780.  William was in prison when he founded the modern toothbrush, making it from small animal’s bone, drilled a small holes, obtained some bristles from a guard, tied them, passed the tufts through the holes on the bone, and glued them. After the massive production of toothbrush, William Addis became one of the most wealthy entrepreneur in English at the time.

Toothbrush

Old History of Toothbrush

By the mid 17th Century, toothbrush has already produced massively through the Europe.

In late 1800, American entrepreneur, H. N. Wadsworth produced the modern toothbrush. The differences is, the modern toothbrush used synthetic fibers or nylon for its brushes. Wikipedia said that:

The first nylon bristle toothbrush, made with nylon yarn, went on sale on February 24, 1938.

This invention have been the revolution for toothbrush history. It is said that the changes by using nylon or fibers was because it was considered that hairs (used to be use for late toothbrushes) or animals bristles is not good materials to be used for oral hygiene.

The first electric toothbrush was founded in Switzerland in 1954.