The History of Teeth Whitening

The actual practice of teeth whitening began around 4000 years ago with the ancient Egyptians. These people would create a whitening paste using ground up pumice stone mixed in wine vinegar. White teeth were a mark of beauty and a sign of the wealthy. This concoction sounds terrible enough, but it isn't the most disgusting thing ever used for teeth whitening. Ancient Romans would actually whiten their teeth using urine! The ammonia in the urine served the purpose, and there are still products today that contain ammonia. Early dentists recognized that what whitened the teeth was the ammonia, and that's what they started using. A lot of active ingredients in things that we purchase today for cleaning the teeth is ammonia.

During the 17th century, people would visit their barbers for a haircut and tooth whitening. The barbers served as both the one to see for your hair, and your teeth. They would actually perform tooth extractions, or pull the teeth. They also performed whitenings. The barber would file down the teeth and apply an acid to them that would whiten them. This actually did make the teeth whiter, however, it led to tooth decay because of the erosion of the tooth enamel. However, because people considered it to be very important to have a great smile and white teeth, this practiced continued until the 18th century.

Thankfully today you no longer have to go to such extreme lengths to have lovely white teeth. 1300SMILES can help you have the beautiful smile you’ve always wanted with our take home teeth whitening treatment.  Call 1300SMILES today on 1300 764 537 or click here to make an appointment.