You know the importance of maintaining good oral hygiene—to brush twice a day and floss in between meals. However, there’s more to know about those precious ivories in your mouth. How much do you really know about your teeth? 

Here are some interesting teeth facts that you probably didn’t know. 

Oral Health Facts

1. The average American will spend 38.5 days brushing their teeth in a lifetime. 
2. If you skip flossing, you miss 40% of your tooth surfaces.
3. The average person spends 45 to 70 seconds a day brushing their teeth, but the recommended amount of time is 2 to 3 minutes.
4. Dental plaque is made up of more than 300 types of bacteria.
5. Drinking 3 or more glasses of soda a day contributes to 62% more tooth decay, fillings, and tooth loss. 
6. By age 17, at least 78% of Americans have had a cavity. 
7. There are around 10 to 12 teaspoons of sugar in one can of soda. 
8. More people use a blue toothbrush than a red toothbrush. 

Weird Teeth Facts

1. Enamel is the toughest substance in your body. 
2. Right handed people chew on their right side, and left handed people chew on their left side. 
3. Kids in North America spend close to half a million dollars on chewing gum every year. 
4. Every person’s tongue and tooth print is unique.
5. Kids laugh about 400 times a day, while adults only laugh 15 times a day.
6. The average woman smiles about 62 times a day, while the average man smiles about 8 times a day.

Animal Teeth Facts

5. Giraffes only have bottom teeth.
6. Cats have 30 teeth, dogs have 42 teeth, pigs have 44 teeth, and an armadillo has a whopping 104 teeth. 
7. A snail has a very tiny mouth but still has more than 25,000 teeth.
8. An elephant grinds its molars to grow new ones, and these molars can be about 7 inches long, and over 6 pounds.
9. The blue whale is the largest mammal in the world, but has no teeth. 
10. Crocodile birds act as animal toothbrushes and clean a crocodile’s teeth. 

Dental History Facts

6. In 1866, Lucy Beaman Hobbs became the first female dentist.
7. In 1986, the National Spelling Bee winner won by spelling ODONTALGIA which is another word for toothache.
8. In 1950, the average amount of money left by the tooth fairy was 25 cents. In 1988, it was $1.00. 
9. The earliest known dentist was Hesi-Re who lived in Egypt over 5,000 years ago.
10. The first toothbrush was a tree twig.
11. In Ancient Greece, pumice, talc, alabaster, and iron rust were used as toothpaste.
12. George Washington never had wooden teeth.
13. In 1905, Irene Newman was trained to clean teeth. She was known as the first Dental Hygienist. 

Knowing more about your teeth can help you take better care of them. Keep these teeth facts in mind to maintain good oral hygiene at all times. Oral health is important, and that’s a fact!

For more advice on dental hygiene or to visit us, contact LeCroy Dental today.