CARE OF THE TEETH

The comfort of a pure breath, and the agreeable effect of a clean and healthy mouth, is something" to rejoice over and l)e proud of in these days of dentistry, when they, the dentists, seem to be the best patron- ized of any in the medical profession. Decay is not the only enemy to the teeth, but the accumulation of tartar upon them has an equally bad effect. This must in any case be removed by an experienced dentist, and after that they must be carefully attended to.

Simple measures regularly employed are sufficient for healthy mouths. Patent nostrums and advertised powders and wash;;s should be avoided. Any wash that is recommended for whitening the teeth is either inca- pable of accompHshing what is claimed for it, or does so at the expense of the integrity of the enamel. The habitual use of astringent washes or powders, so far from being conducive to the health of the gums, is injurious. Strongly alkaline washes are also injurious. Washes or powders containing alum, cream of tartar, charcoal, ground barks or acids of any description, are injurious, either because of a chemical action upon the teeth, or because the ingredients are apt to get under the gums. Tooth powders containing excessively gritty or abrasive ingredients, do injury by roughening instead of polishing the enamel surfaces of the teeth. Perhaps there is no agent in common use for

356 THE TOILET.

cleansing the teeth worthy of such utter condemnation as powdered charcoal. Its continued use, besides loosening the teeth, causes the gums to assume a tattooed appearance.

A mouth wash may be anodyne, astringent, stimulant or tonic ; but if the secretions are natural and the gums healthy, the wash should merely be pleasant to the taste and agreeable in odor. A tooth powder for a healthy condition of the mouth and teeth, should be purely a mechanical agent, possessing a hardness sufficient for the removal, without liability to injure the enamel, of slight accumulations of food and tartar.

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 mjudicious 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 belong 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 alkaHne, 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 1 as been softened in this way becomes hard again by being put in water. When the effect of sour fruit on the teeth subsides, they feel as well as ever, but they are not as well ; and the oftener it is repeated the sooner the disastrous conse- quences are manifested.

Sweets are almost as injurious to the teeth as the acids, especially candy. A raisin skin left on the teeth is said to destroy the enamel within a very short time. Very cold or hot water also leaves its effect ; tepid water is better than either. If the teeth are crusted with tartar, it can be removed by rubbing them with a little pulverized pumice stone (which can be purchased at the drug store), either with a brush or soft pine stick. This leaves them beautifully white and clean, but must not be used oftener than once a month, or it will destroy the enamel. After using the toothbrush, if a small piece of licorice is dissolved in the mouth, it will secure a sweet breath. This will even counteract the effects of indigestion, has no smell, and sweetens the mouth and stomach.

The tincture of krameria, mixed with an equal quantity of good eau •de cologne and diluted with water, makes an elegant and delightful astringent mouth-wash ; tincture of myrrh, so often prescribed, is of questionable value as a mouth- wash. A tablespoonful of the tincture of calendala to a goblet of water, makes a pleasant and efficient mouth- wash, for use after the removal of deposits above the teeth or after extraction of the teeth.

It is useful .also to chew a bit of orris root, or to wash the mouth with tincture of myrrh, or .to dissolve a bit of burned alum in the mouth. To clean the teeth, rub them with the ashes of burned bread. It must be thoroughly burned, not charred,