The history of the creation of a toothbrush for children. History of the toothbrush

I want to get a direct and clear answer to everything. For example, who invented the toothbrush, first name, last name, number (more precisely), country and how was it? Not so. Even in ancient times, people used toothpicks made of wood and bone to clean food from their teeth.

Already in Ancient Egypt there were toothpick sticks, pointed at one end and fluffy at the other. The teeth were rubbed with this natural whisk, and special compounds were rubbed into the gums. In Babylon, Greece, and Rome, oral hygiene was also quite developed, including brushing teeth, chewing fibrous plants, and rubbing gums. In Arab countries, methods of chewing plants with disinfectant properties have long been known. In India, chewing twigs of the neem tree are still sold. Friction against the fibers of the twig cleanses the teeth, and the juice disinfects and strengthens the teeth and gums. So chewing gum has a long history. Toothpaste is written about in Egyptian papyrus. It consisted of crushed and mixed salt, pepper, mint leaves and iris flowers.

But for some reason, the invention of the toothbrush has recently been stubbornly attributed to the Chinese. Moreover, they name not only the year, but also a specific date - June 28, 1497. But what exactly did the Chinese invent? Apparently a compound brush, with pig bristles attached to a bamboo stick. In Russia in the 16th century, similar “tooth whisks” were also known, consisting of a wooden stick and a whisk made of pork bristles. These inventions were brought to Russia from Europe, where panicles made of horse hair, badger bristles, etc. were also used with pork whisks. And when the court dentist Pierre Fauchard instilled in Louis XV a love of brushing his teeth, toothbrushes became popular.

Pierre Fauchard. Louis XV

Naturally, the production of cheap toothbrushes was started by the British in 1780 - William Addis. Again, naturally, the first patent for a toothbrush was received by the American H. N. Wadsworth in 1850. The brush was made of hog bristles, and the trick of the patent was to attach the bristles well to the bone handle. By that time, they had learned to detect bacteria and it turned out that there was a cavity in the vaunted pig bristles and bacteria multiplied well there.

The real revolution occurred in 1938, when the DuPont company replaced animal bristles with synthetic bristles made of nylon and without bacterial incubator cavities. The first electric toothbrush was introduced in 1959. In the mid-90s, a toothbrush was proposed that cleans not only with bristles, but also with ultrasound.

In January 2003, Americans named the toothbrush the number one invention on the list of inventions they couldn't live without. Car, computer, cell phone, microwave - rest. Here's how expensive dental treatment is in the US. There is also a monument to a toothbrush six meters high. It has stood in the German city of Krefeld since 1983.

Maybe you have ever wondered how many times you can reinvent the toothbrush. Imagine that, according to statistics, between 1963 and 1998 more than 3,000 toothbrush models were patented!
Our ancestors probably understood a thing or two about dental hygiene. Paleontologist Leslie Hlusko of the University of Illinois claims to have evidence that early humans used vestigial toothpicks.

may result from erosion caused by repeated rubbing against grass stems. Skeptics emphasize that modern toothpicks do not leave marks, but, according to Hlusko, the abrasive properties of grass are higher - because, unlike wood, it contains many solid silicon particles. Hlusko says that the blades of grass would have left marks corresponding to the diameter of these holes - from one and a half millimeters to 2.6. Similar blades of grass grew almost everywhere, and there was practically no need to finish them to turn them into a good toothpick.
It is believed that ancient hominids began picking their teeth in an attempt to relieve pain from dental diseases. Hlusko conducted experiments first with a baboon tooth, then with a human one, and in both cases she was able to leave marks almost identical to those found on fossil teeth.

It is known that toothpicks were popular in ancient China, Japan, India, Iran and other early eastern civilizations. They were usually made from mastic wood, sometimes from gold or bronze.

The unnoticed but very important history of the toothbrush begins with chewing

flax records that were used by the inhabitants of Babylon many centuries before the birth of Christ. Ancient authors discussed the issue of brushing teeth very enthusiastically, and if you believe their evidence, then a simple chewing plate evolved into a chewing stick the size of a modern pencil. Lovers of cleanliness and hygiene chewed one end to form a wider cleaning surface, and used the other as a toothpick. By the way, the Romans kept special slaves for the difficult task of brushing teeth. This hygienic ritual was part of religious rituals.

These sticks, the most primitive version of a toothbrush, are still used by some Australian and African tribes, and are reported to be as effective at brushing as their modern counterparts.

The invention of the brush with bristles in 1498 is considered to be the merit of the Chinese. The bristles of a Siberian boar were attached to a bamboo or bone handle. Moreover, for such a task, only the “hair” that grew on the neck was shaved off the boar.

During the time of Ivan the Terrible, dental “brooms” were in use in Rus' - sticks with a tuft of bristles at the end, which the boyars used after meals.

Peter I ordered the boyars to brush their teeth with crushed chalk and a damp cloth. But the people knew another method: coals from birch wood perfectly whiten teeth. But you should rinse your mouth especially carefully after such cleaning.

This brush came to Europe in the seventeenth century and soon became widespread. Europeans who brushed their teeth (and there were very few of them, since at that time using a brush was considered an indecent activity - the custom of using a toothpick made of goose feather, gold or copper after meals was much more common) found pig bristles too harsh and replaced her horsehair. According to written sources, French dentists, the most "advanced" specialists in this field in Europe at the time, actively recommended daily use of a toothbrush throughout the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. Doctors working in colonized America also recommended its use.

Gradually, natural hair was replaced by nylon, which was invented in 1937 in the laboratories of Dupont de Nemours. The first such brush appeared in 1938. But toothbrushes, even with nylon bristles, remained very stiff, until in 1950 the Du Pont company improved the technology and made nylon hairs softer.

Oddly enough, the explosion in the hygiene industry, and in particular when it came to brushing teeth, occurred during World War II thanks to the military and continued into the post-war era. The houses of Europe and America were literally flooded with all kinds of hygiene products. Rapidly developing technologies for the use of plastics made it possible to produce brushes of a wide variety of colors and shapes.

The idea of ​​an electric toothbrush was proposed back in 1880 by Dr. Scott. The hairs of Dr. Scott's Electric Brush, according to the manufacturers, "possessed a constant electromagnetic field."
The first true mechanical toothbrush was patented in Switzerland after World War II and was powered by electricity. In 1960, it appeared on the American market. And in 1961, General Electric introduced the first model with a self-contained power supply. And although this thing seemed overkill to many, the electric toothbrush very quickly gained popularity. Later, various modifications of it appeared: a mechanical toothbrush with a built-in timer, a mechanical toothbrush with replaceable cleaning heads, etc.

In the 60s, in addition to mechanical brushes, electric rotating brushes appeared (Rotadent, Interplack, etc.). They work like hand brushes, but with increased abrasion, as they rotate at an average speed of 7000 movements per minute or 58 Hz. These brushes become an order of magnitude more effective than manual ones, but if cleaned too aggressively, they can harm the enamel.
In the 90s, electric reciprocating brushes appeared, also working on the principle of abrasion, most of which exist on today's market.
Combining the results of 29 studies, which involved 2,547 people from North America, Europe and Israel, American and British scientists came to the conclusion that only one type of electric toothbrush - the Braun Oral-B, which performs rotational-oscillatory movements - is significantly more effective than a conventional manual one. .

But the most significant progress in more “gentle” teeth cleaning was achieved with the development of sonic toothbrushes (Braun Oral B-3D, Sonicart, Panasonic, etc.). They operate at a sound frequency of an average of 30,000 strokes per minute or 250 Hz, which allows for a deeper and at the same time “gentle” foam cleaning.
In the mid-90s in the USA, Dr. Robert Bock developed and patented the Ultrasonex dual-frequency ultrasonic brush. This brush uses a completely new technology based on ultrasound. The brush moves at a speed of 196,000,000 movements per minute (or 1,600,000 Hz), which is more than 6,000 times faster than sonic ones. In addition to ultrasonic, “foamy” sound frequency is also used - 18,000 movements per minute. The bacteria that make up plaque are arranged in chains and attached to the surface of the tooth. . Waves of a therapeutic ultrasonic frequency of 1.6 MHz break these chains even under the gum (at a level of 5 mm) and destroy the method of attachment of bacteria, and the sound frequency of 18,000 movements per minute or 150 Hz, having a foaming effect, helps to gently remove this plaque.

A 12-week double-blind study at Case Western Dental Institute, USA, in 2 groups of patients (group 1 - using a brush with ultrasonic frequency, 2nd - without ultrasound), showed that Ultrasonex with ultrasound was 200 % more effective in removing nighttime plaque, 230% more effective in treating gingivitis, and 450% more effective in reducing bleeding gums.

Another distinctive feature of a modern toothbrush is its rounded bristles. For many years, dentists recommended straight, standard toothbrushes only because they lacked the technology to round every hair. Round bristles are the least traumatic for oral tissues. Modern production methods make it possible to create toothbrushes in a variety of shapes, sizes and models.

Design and marketing thought has not left a single centimeter of this tool untouched, starting from the comfortable, non-slip handle, bent, floating, etc. heads to bristles of various shapes and functional purposes.

For example, Glen Heavenor, a dentist from Glasgow, invents ergonomic handles in his spare time. He already has handles for frying pans, combs, garden tools and an adjustable wrench, a baby stroller and a safety razor. But the dream of a dentist has always been, of course, the ideal handle for a toothbrush. According to Glen, we brush our teeth incorrectly because we are simply not comfortable doing it in the most effective way. But no invention was as difficult for him as the toothbrush. The doctor was not afraid to be left without his main job, so he spent four years and a lot of his own savings on designing and testing an ergonomic brush. Now the prototype of the handle is finally ready, but needs further development. To encourage the dental designer, the National Group for Scientists, Inventors and Artists awarded him a grant of £75,000.

The most exotic toothbrush options:

Ionized brush, the action of which is based on the interaction of oppositely polar charges

Dentrust 3-sided brush with two heads, allowing you to brush your tooth on three sides at once

B-Fresh Toоthbrush w/ Toоthpaste - a toothbrush for travelers, combined with a tube of toothpaste for compactness

Concept brush with a disposable bristle head from Bould Design

O-zone toothbrush with a hole in the middle of the cleaning head for better rinsing

The research company Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS) is studying public opinion commissioned by the legendary Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) as part of the Lemelson-MIT Program. The last survey was conducted in the United States in November 2002. To evaluate the importance of the toothbrush for humanity, it was included in the list of vital inventions for humans. And who would have thought! The toothbrush has overtaken the car, the computer and the mobile phone.

All that remains is to erect a monument to the brush! Which, by the way, was done!
The monument to the toothbrush (“Paste, in a Cup, on a Sink: Portrait of Coosje’s Thinking”) was erected in 1983 in the German town of Krefeld. The author is engineer J. Robert Jennings. Dimensions 6 x 2.8 x 0.2 meters Material - steel and cast iron painted with polyurethane enamel.

Have you ever wondered how long ago the toothbrush and toothpaste appeared? It turns out that these simple everyday things have a long and rich history.

The very first prototype of a toothbrush was a twig of an ethereal tree, sharpened on one side and soaked on the other. The pointed end was used to clean teeth from food debris, the other side was chewed to remove plaque. By the way, in some remote corners of the world, untouched by progress, such sticks are still used.

This is probably what the very first toothbrush in history looked like.

In Ancient Egypt, they also observed oral hygiene. Sticks with loose ends have been found in tombs dating back to around 3000 BC. In addition to dental sticks, they began to use something similar to toothpaste. Ancient Egyptian papyri preserved a recipe for a mixture consisting of wine vinegar, pumice powder and ashes left after burning the entrails of a bull or cow.

The ancient Egyptians took the issue of oral hygiene seriously: there is no evidence of this.

Later, toothbrushes appeared in China. Unlike the ancient Egyptian ones, their tips were made of mint, which not only cleansed the oral cavity, but also freshened the breath. In the 14th century, dental sticks were significantly modernized. They were a bone or bamboo twig with pig bristles attached. Instead of paste, we used ground eggshells, ginseng extract, pine needles and salt.

Toothbrushes began to gain popularity and appeared in many countries.

In Europe, toothpicks made of gold, copper or goose feathers were used, but these were soon replaced by Chinese brushes. However, Europeans preferred horsehair to pig bristles because it was softer. Later, tooth powder appeared in England. It was made from clay fragments, brick powder and porcelain ground into dust; glycerin was added to improve the taste.

Toothbrushes of the 18th century were already quite similar to modern ones, both in appearance and in design.

Toothbrushes have reached Russia. During the reign of Ivan 4, the boyars, after eating, took out their “dental broom” - a stick with a tuft of bristles at the end. Under Peter the Great, the nobility brushed their teeth with crushed chalk, but the common people used birch coals to clean and disinfect the oral cavity.

In 1870, the dental stick received an improved appearance, very close to the modern one. They were all made from the same materials: animal bones and horse hair. Toothpaste also changed, acquiring a paste-like consistency and was sold in tubes.

Toothbrushes got their modern look with the invention of nylon - a flexible, moisture-resistant, durable and affordable material.

Today, the variety and functionality of oral hygiene attributes is enormous - electric, soft, hard, all colors of the rainbow and any size, but it all started with a simple wooden stick.

A toothbrush is an indispensable thing in the daily life of every person, from babies who have just erupted their first tooth to almost toothless old people. This is truly a simple and important attribute, since it helps to cleanse the oral cavity of food debris, plaque, and prevent the growth of bacteria and, accordingly, many dental problems. Such a simple and uncomplicated thing plays such an important role in a person’s life.

Who invented the brush? Who invented it? The answers are not so easy to find, since the issue of oral and dental hygiene was relevant even in ancient times, and even then people somehow adapted to brush their teeth with improvised means. Millennia have passed since those times, the toothbrush has evolved to the one we use, although science has moved on, and brush manufacturing companies do not stop modernizing and improving them.

How did you brush your teeth before using a toothbrush?

People began taking care of their teeth long before our era. Initially, it was a simple bunch of grass, with which the ancient inhabitants tried to clean their teeth of food debris. This device was not entirely convenient, and also ineffective. Some peoples used wooden sticks, the end of which was chewed to make something like a brush, after which they cleaned their teeth of plaque with this device.

They tried to clean their teeth from food debris with a specially pointed end of a wooden stick (something like a modern toothpick). For this purpose, only those tree species were used that contained essential oils that had not only a pleasant smell, but also antibacterial properties. This historical fact is confirmed by historians who examined the written materials of Ancient Egypt.

Some African aborigines still use toothbrushes that they make themselves from salvadoran branches. In some American countries, white elm branches were used for this purpose. Some peoples did not use such sophisticated devices for cleaning teeth; they chewed resin and beeswax, which, at least a little, removed food debris and plaque.

To increase the effectiveness of primitive toothbrushes, the Drevlyans began to come up with special cleaning powders. In Ancient Egypt, crushed herbs (frankincense, myrrh), eggshells, tree bark and other substances were used for this.

Although such powders cleaned teeth more thoroughly, they were merciless to tooth enamel because they contained too many abrasive particles. The inhabitants of Ancient India solved this issue in their own way - they burned the horns of cattle and used this ashes as a dental cleaning powder.

When was the toothbrush invented?

A device more or less vaguely resembling a modern toothbrush appeared only in 1498. It was invented by the Chinese, who came up with the idea of ​​making a small handle from a bamboo branch and somehow attaching the stiff bristles of a Siberian boar to it. This brush was used without the use of paste or cleaning powder. Each bristle was handpicked - they were taken only from the animal's backbone, where the coarse and hard bristles themselves were located. The principle of attaching the handle to the bristles was also different from the modern one - if now the brush is located parallel to the handle, then it was perpendicular. This invention quickly became popular, and it began to be exported to neighboring countries, including Russia.

In European countries, at first, the toothbrush was not accepted at all, since at that time hygiene of the mouth, as well as the whole body, was not mandatory, so the use of a brush was considered something indecent, blatant and unworthy of an aristocrat. Towards the middle of the seventeenth century, hygiene began to slowly take root in the circles of the aristocracy, and the toothbrush rightfully gained ground.

In European countries, bristles were taken not from the ridge of a boar, but from a horse's tail, but they were considered too soft to fully perform their function. They also did not want to use pig bristles for cleaning teeth, since it could injure the gums and teeth.

Many years have passed since scientists of that time came to the conclusion that the remains of food and plaque that are cleaned with a brush, to one degree or another, remain among the bristles, where pathogenic bacteria then multiply. They suggested boiling the toothbrush after each use, which caused rapid wear of the natural bristles of this tool.

Another fifty years later, when this problem was finally solved, a synthetic material called nylon was invented, which became the starting point for the emergence of modern toothbrushes.

The appearance of the first brushes in Russia

In Russia, the first devices for cleaning teeth appeared during the reign of Ivan the Terrible. A toothbrush entered Russia from China. It was the same bamboo stick with boar bristles attached, but the Russians didn’t really like the stiffness of natural boar bristles, and they began to use hairs from the horse’s tail.

Only some noble nobles used a toothbrush, or, as it was called then, a “toothbroom”, while the rest got along just fine without this device. Poor peasants brushed their teeth with charcoal, often made from birch, which not only helped get rid of plaque, but also perfectly whitened tooth enamel.

When the reins of power passed to Peter I several generations later, he gave the order to stop using a “toothbroom” with natural bristles and replace it with a cloth with a pinch of crushed chalk. This happened at a time when Louis Pasteur suggested that the cause of all diseases lies precisely in the toothbrush, since there is always a humid environment where microorganisms actually multiply, which provoke various diseases. Villagers and servants still used charcoal.

Evolution of the brush - dimensions and characteristics

If in ancient times people cleaned their teeth of food debris with various twigs from trees with pointed or soaked ends, and a little later with a special device made of a wooden stick with an attached tuft of animal bristles, then in our time toothbrushes come in a variety of shapes, sizes and materials.

It is impossible to select the best among modern brushes, since it is necessary to take into account the individual characteristics of each person. For some, one brush will be the most practical and functional, but for others it will be too hard and uncomfortable. Fortunately, nowadays there is plenty to choose from.

Modern toothbrushes can be divided into the following types:

• Standard - a classic simple device for cleaning teeth and the oral cavity, which consists of a handle and bristles; it may differ in shape (for children, the width of the bristles on a toothbrush should not exceed 18 millimeters, for adults - 30 mm). This brush should be selected taking into account its main characteristic - the stiffness of the bristles, which can be soft, medium hard or hard.
• Electric – a toothbrush that runs on batteries or a battery. It is distinguished by a small area of ​​bristles, usually round in shape, which rotates and vibrates, thanks to which it efficiently cleans even the most hidden corners of the mouth and teeth.
• Ionic - a device for cleaning teeth is similar in appearance to a regular toothbrush, but has installed batteries, thanks to which the ionization function is activated during brushing. Inside the bristles there is a negatively charged titanium dioxide rod, which, when interacting with water, attracts bacteria and other microorganisms found in dental plaque, and also activates the acidic effect on the microflora.
• Ultrasonic – a brush that uses ultrasound to affect microorganisms in the mouth. It is a type of electric. It perfectly removes any dirt, removes food residues and prevents the formation of tartar.

There are a huge number of different shapes of handles and working parts of toothbrushes, so you can choose exactly the brush that is suitable for a particular person, taking into account the characteristics of his teeth, gums and other factors.

The tufts of the working part of toothbrushes can differ in characteristics - in shape, in length of the bristles, they can be large and short, hard and soft, thin and thick. There are also toothbrushes with silicone bristles along the edges of the working surface for light massage of the gums. Also, toothbrushes can have different sizes and handle shapes, which can be straight, flat, curved, spoon-shaped, medium, large.

It went through a lot of modifications before it found its properties. Each stage of development of civilization contributed to its creation. The age of high technology continues to bring this instrument to perfection.

The history of the toothbrush is fascinating and helps to appreciate the technological advances that have made it easier and more effective.

Borrowings from the first people

To tell the history of toothbrushes to children, you can show them a short but interesting cartoon:

Primitive people used a bunch of grass for cleaning, rubbing their teeth with it. This is evidenced by an archaeological examination of the teeth of an ancient person: oblong curved marks were found on the preserved enamel - the result of exposure to the first oral hygiene products.

Later, double-sided sticks made of wood began to be used. One end is sharp - an analogue of a modern toothpick, the other, broken into fibers, was supposed to be chewed. Trees rich in essential oils were used as they have disinfectant properties.

Features of ancient traditions in brushing teeth among different peoples:

1. In Africa, sticks made from El Salvador wood are still popular, and the indigenous people of America make them from white elm.
2. In the East, similar instruments were called “miswak”, and the wood for their production was “arak” - also known as Salvadora Persian.
3. According to legend, the tradition of brushing your teeth was introduced by the Prophet Muhammad, so in the Islamic world brushing your teeth was considered a sacred duty.
4. Ancient Buddhists also deified brushing their teeth - Buddha used a stick given by one of the gods to brush his teeth.
5. Wooden sticks dating back 5,000 years have been found in the tombs of Egyptian pharaohs.
6. Indian ancient medicine prescribed chewing twigs of the neem or banyan tree;
7. In Rome, brushing teeth was considered dishonorable, so patricians had their teeth cleaned by slaves.

Since ancient times, such devices were in use in Rus', made from oak branches. The healing properties are widely used to treat oral diseases. Chewing gum made from resin, in addition to mechanically cleaning teeth, had a beneficial effect on the gums.

In ancient times they treated teeth, which is also interesting, which you can learn from.

Predecessors

The first mention of the resemblance of a toothbrush is recorded in the “Treasury of the Eye of True Dharma” by Eihei Dogen, a Japanese Zen master, dated 1223 AD. He writes that Buddhist monks made brushes from buffalo bone and horsehair. The widespread use of such models spread to China in 1498, they consisted of bamboo handles and tufts of natural bristles at the end, like a brush. The hair used for production was hard - the bristles of a Siberian boar, the hair of a badger.

Among the European nobility, healthy white teeth at that time were bad manners; they were deliberately cut down at the root, and toothbrushes came into use slowly.

In the mid-17th century, the book of the French dentist Pierre Fauchard, “The Dentist-Surgeon or Treatise on the Teeth,” accelerated the spread of brushes in Europe. He refuted the theory of “tooth worms” that supposedly provoke disease and strongly recommended brushing your teeth daily. But he considered animal bristles unsuitable, proposing to replace it with natural sea sponge.

Under Ivan the Terrible, primitive brushes also appeared in Rus', where, due to their external similarity, they were given the name “toothbroom.” Therefore, regarding when the toothbrush appeared in Russia, we can say that under Ivan the Terrible. However, those models bore little resemblance to modern ones, which is why they were called brooms. They were common among Russian boyars; having them with you and using them after meals became a sign of good manners. The peasants rubbed their teeth with ash and charcoal, and then rinsed their mouths thoroughly.

Under Peter I, a decree was issued to replace the use of dental brooms with cleaning with a cloth with crushed chalk; the method was borrowed from Europe, where ordinary people, unlike the nobility, paid great attention to oral hygiene. In Russia, where the method was used at court, mint oil was added to the composition to improve the taste and freshen breath.

The first samples: who invented the modern model

The modern brush was invented by William Addis. In 1770, an Englishman went to prison for inciting a riot, and there he made a modern model from bone and bristles.

Upon his release, he launched mass production and became rich; after his death, management of the business passed to his son, and the company he created, Wisdom Toothbrushes, produces products to this day.

At the end of the 18th century, Louis Pasteur declared that dental diseases were caused by germs. Soon after the invention of toothbrushes, it became obvious that natural bristles did not dry well and created an ideal environment for the growth of bacteria. The stiffness of the bristles was excessive, the enamel was damaged, attempts to replace the wool of the Siberian boar with horsehair did not eliminate the problem with microbes. Disinfecting brushes by boiling quickly rendered them unusable.

The first toothbrush made from artificial material was developed and marketed by Oral-B in 1938.

This was a breakthrough in the field of oral hygiene, nylon dries quickly and is easy to clean. The level of technological development made it possible to make nylon fibers rounded at the ends - they did not damage the enamel. Then they began to coat the fibers with a special pigmented composition: when it is completely erased, it’s time to buy a new one. Models of different hardness have appeared, now soft bristles are intended for children, medium - for adults, and hard - for cleaning removable dentures.

Electrification

Origin has its own story. George Scott filed a patent for the first electric toothbrush at the end of the 19th century. She sent out small electrical shocks. The inventor believed that the current was good for the teeth.

In 1939, a model appeared without this flaw; it was developed in Switzerland. Only in 1960 the American company Broxodent became the first wholesale supplier of the product. Initially, such brushes were designed to help people with fine motor skills disorders. But a year later it was supplanted by an analogue from General Electrics; it ran on a rechargeable battery and could be used by anyone.

In Russia, such innovations appeared relatively recently - in the middle of the last decade of the 20th century. For comparison, in the USA during these years, Dr. Robert Bock completed development for oral hygiene. The pulses break chains of bacteria at a depth of up to 5 mm in the gums.

Improvements

From 1963 to 1998, about 3,000 brush models were patented. The following models were in demand:

• two heads instead of one - you can brush your teeth on both sides at once and save time;
• combined with a tube of toothpaste, the invention is intended for travelers and saves space in luggage;
• To better rinse the bristles after use, they came up with brushes with holes in the heads;
• electric and simple models with replaceable heads;
• disposable brushes for guests;
• The built-in timer is designed to control the duration of cleaning.

As you can see, what a toothbrush consists of depends on the specific model.

Japan became the leader in know-how - they came up with the idea of ​​a micro-video camera to see hard-to-reach places on the screen and clean more efficiently. This device is equipped with a USB port for connecting to a computer.