We're Celebrating Dental Smiles Month!

June 22, 2022

It’s hard to imagine a time before the everyday conveniences of modern dental care, but dentistry dates back thousands of years, long before the invention of toothpaste, dental floss, or anesthesia. 

In honor of Dental Smiles Month this June, we are celebrating some of the many dentistry milestones throughout history. Because of these developments, the experience of going to the dentist today is more convenient and comfortable than ever before. 

Important Milestones in the History of Dentistry 

• The earliest evidence of dentistry may be nearly 9,000 years old. In 2006, anthropologists reported discovering drilled molars that belonged to residents of a Neolithic village in present-day Pakistan, in what is thought to be the oldest Stone Age complex in the Indus River valley. 
• A Sumerian text from 5000 B.C. described “tooth worms” as the cause of dental decay. This belief wasn’t disproven until the 18th century.  
• The 2600 B.C. inscription on the tomb of Hesy-Re, an Egyptian scribe known as the first recorded dentist, refers to him as “the greatest of those who deal with teeth, and of physicians.”
• In ancient Greece, circa 500-300 B.C., Hippocrates and Aristotle wrote about dentistry, including treating gum disease and decaying teeth and extracting teeth with forceps. 
• A Chinese medical text from 700 described the use of dental fillings made of amalgam.
• In 1530, the first book solely about dentistry, The Little Medicinal Book for All Kinds of Diseases and Infirmities of the Teeth, was published in Germany. 
•     Dentistry became a more formalized profession in the early 1700s. Pierre Fauchard, a French surgeon credited as “the father of modern dentistry,” published the book, The Surgeon Dentist, a Treatise on Teeth, which outlined a detailed system of dental care for the first time. 
• The world’s first dental school, the Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, opened in 1840 and established the Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) degree. The American Dental Association (ADA) was founded in 1859. The Harvard University Dental School, the first dental institution affiliated with a university, opened in 1867.
• In 1846, the dentist performed the first public demonstration of using ether anesthesia for surgery. 
• Colgate released the first mass-produced toothpastes and toothbrushes in the late 1800s. 
• The 20th century marked significant technological advances, including the porcelain jacket crown, filling casting machines, high-speed drills, fluoride toothpaste, electric toothbrushes, and dental implants.

Why Supply Clinic Loves Our Dentists

Dental Smiles Month is the nation’s largest oral health campaign, and we believe that it’s due to the power behind a smile. At Supply Clinic, good oral health is something we all prioritize, but it is the hygienists we see twice a year that we wanted to recognize. 

We asked our employees to take a moment and share why they have a healthy smile. Their answers were delightful, authentic, joyous, and nothing short of clean. Here’s what they shared: