We have to brush our teeth every day, did the ancients have toothbrushes? How did they brush their teeth? The ancient people did not have toothpaste, so what did they use to brush their teeth? I have collected some information, and we are curious about the things that the ancient people brushed their teeth. When toothbrushing tools were not invented, ancient people had the good habit of rinsing their mouths early in the morning. The record of “gargling” in the ancient books is shown in the book “The Source of Diseases” written by Chao Yuanfang of Sui Dynasty: “Gargling often after eating, but if you don’t, it makes people sick with tooth decay.” Here it refers to gargling after meals. Some people also advocate rinsing the mouth at night, which is believed to have a greater effect on protecting teeth. In the Song Dynasty, Zhang Gao writes “Medical Sayings”; “The world serves, often inverted, early gargling is not as good as lying down and gargling, to remove the accumulation between the teeth, the teeth are also strong.” In the Song Dynasty, “Taiping Shenghui Fang” also pointed out that tooth brushing should be done in the morning and evening. Later, more people advocate that rinsing the mouth twice a day, morning and evening, to maintain oral hygiene. What kind of water should be used for rinsing the mouth? 1. salt water, the Tang Dynasty Sun Simiao “prepared urgent thousand gold to formula” said: “every day to a twist of salt in the mouth, with warm water containing …… mouth teeth firmly.” 2. strong tea, “book of longevity” useful record of strong tea gargle, “where the diet finished, roll with a strong tea gargle, annoying both go, and the spleen and stomach since, where the meat in the teeth, get tea gargle wash, do not feel off and not bother picking. Cover tooth nature will be bitter, the edge of this gradually firm and tooth stupid and go on since.” According to modern pharmacological analysis, in addition to vitamins, tea also contains tannin and a small amount of fluorine compounds, tannin has antibacterial, bactericidal effect. Fluorine compounds do have the effect of preventing dental caries. It means that the ancient advocate of gargling with strong tea to prevent tooth decay is in line with the scientific principle. 3. Wine, “Medical say”: “Liu years more than seventy years, the spirit does not decline, every drink of wine always a gargle, although drunk not forget also, said this can be no tooth disease.” 4. Song “Taiping Sheng Hui Fang” also contains the medicine paste medicine tooth method: willow, acacia, mulberry decoction water boiling paste, into the ginger juice, pine, etc. every use of tooth rub, this can be said to be the prototype of today’s drug toothpaste. This is the rich experience accumulated by people in the practice of life. Later, our people in the rinse method, based on the emergence of wipe teeth method. Did ancient people use toothbrush to brush their teeth? During the period of Sui, Tang and Five Dynasties, there appeared “wipe teeth method”. The method mainly has “poplar branch wipe teeth method” and “finger wipe teeth method” two kinds, “the secret of the external Taiwan” contains “every day willow branch bite head soft, point to take medicine wipe teeth, fragrant and clean.” Also useful finger wipe teeth, is the right middle finger as a “toothbrush”. To the Ming Dynasty more people advocate the use of left and right hand while wiping teeth. In the Song Dynasty, there was already a toothbrush with hair implants. Song – Zhou Shouzhong “health class compilation”: “cover brush teeth are horsetail for it”. It was more than 500 years earlier than Europe. I think it’s interesting that we have special toothpaste and toothbrush today, and I feel happy to live in modern times. Cherish the happiness now, and start from brushing your teeth well!