Like many common household items, we give little thought to their origins, and the toothbrush is no exception. But for those with a desire to know where things come from, who invented the toothbrush is a burning question waiting to be answered. As it happens, there isn’t one person that can be singled out as being the one who invented the toothbrush. Instead, the toothbrush, as we know it today, evolved over time and out of necessity.
The origins of the toothbrush can be found as early a 3000 BC. These ancient peoples used what’s known as a chew stick, a small twig of bamboo or other wood with a frayed end that was chewed and rubbed against the teeth. The modern toothbrush began to take shape in China in the late 15th century. Bristles made from the coarse hair of a hog’s neck were attached to a bamboo or bone handle, and were used in the same fashion as today.
If there were one name that could be thrown out as the person who invented the toothbrush, it would be William Addis, an Englishman who mass-produced an early version of the modern toothbrush in the early 1800′s. Running a close second would be H.N. Wadsworth, the first American to hold a patent on the toothbrush, which led to mass production around 1885.
While bone and bamboo handles were replaced by wood in the early part of the 20th century, boar and other natural bristles continued to be used. However, in 1938 Dupont, then known as Dupont de Nemours, introduced the first nylon bristles. Despite this, regularly brushing one’s teeth was not a part of American life until after the second world war, when the good hygiene habits of the returning soldiers took hold.
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