Tooth Worms?

Did you know that before the idea of oral hygiene was even thought of, people would blame their toothaches and tooth decay on “tooth worms”?

According to 1-800 Dentist, the cause of any type of tooth pain can be rooted back to these mythical “tooth worms”. The idea was that a worm would, somehow, find itself in your tooth. When you felt a toothache, one would assume that the worm is wiggling around within your tooth. Once the toothache has gone away, the worm would rest until the next toothache.

Nobody had a clear idea what these “tooth worms” looked like – probably because they did not exist! However, certain groups of people believed these worms to look different. For example, those in England thought that they could resemble eels.

This theory was not actually ruled out until the 18th century, while certain cultures still regarded tooth worms as the cause of toothaches up until the early 1900’s!

At any rate, it is amusing how scientific and medicinal progressions as well as technological advancements have impacted what we know about our health.

Think you might have a tooth worm? See if you qualify to be a patient at HealthLink Dental Clinic and we would be happy to check!