Need a Laugh? Funny Dental Facts You Didn’t Know

Every now and then, it’s nice to step back and enjoy the funny side of your teeth.  Here are some interesting (and funny) dental facts you may never have heard, courtesy of your local family dentist in Aliso Viejo.

Hygiene

• 25% of Americans don’t brush their teeth twice a day! People with this habit have a third higher chance of developing tooth decay.
• Those two-minute recommended brushing sessions really add up. You spend nearly 40 days of your lifetime brushing your teeth.
• There’s more bacteria in your mouth than human beings on planet earth.
• People tend to prefer blue toothbrushes over red ones.

Teeth

• Almost 25% of American adults have no teeth!
• The tooth is the only part of your body that can’t heal itself. Family dental care is a must to fix tooth problems like cavities and chipped teeth.
• 3 million teeth are lost during sporting events every year.
• Tooth decay is the second most common disease. The most common is, as expected, the common cold.
• Despite the misconception, George Washington’s teeth weren’t made of wood. He had dentures that were crafted of fine materials like gold, ivory, and hippopotamus teeth. No wonder he’s only depicted with his mouth shut.
• Some people pay for famous teeth. One of Sir Isaac Newton’s teeth was sold in 1816 for the modern-day equivalent of $35,700.

Sweets

• When asked which they would give up for a year, more people chose to give up vacation time rather than give up desserts.
• Cotton candy was invented by a dentist and was originally called “fairy floss.”
• North American children spend nearly half a million dollars a year on chewing gum.

Smiles

• There are 19 specific types of smiles.
• Women smile 62 times per day, on average. The average man only smiles 8 times.
• People have cited being critical of their smile as 48% of the reasons they untag themselves in Facebook photos.
• A person with a nice smile is 58% more likely to be perceived as wealthy and successful than someone with a flawed smile.
• A good smile also makes people seem more trustworthy and reliable.
• It only takes 17 muscles to smile. For a frown, you need 48.

Animals

• Giraffes only have bottom teeth.
• An elephant’s molar weights up to 6 pounds! Even some dinosaur teeth only weighed a single pound.
• Who has the most teeth on the planet? The spinner dolphin is by far the winner, with a whopping 252 teeth. They’d certainly have trouble finding affordable dental services.
• Mosquitoes actually have teeth—47 of them.
• Some aquatic mammals have teeth but don’t chew. The sole purpose of their teeth is to grab prey.
• In the middle ages, it was believed that kissing a donkey would cure a sore tooth.

Miscellaneous

• You’ll probably spend over 20,000 minutes of your life kissing someone.
• Every human tongue, like every fingerprint, is unique. Maybe the police should be collecting your tongue print instead.
• The life span of a taste bud is only 10 days. No wonder they say your tastes change as you age.
• The average human produces enough saliva in their lifetime to fill two swimming pools. That’s 100,000 gallons of spit.
• What’s the most common cause of choking in America? Toothpicks.

If you want more facts about teeth—especially ones that are actually useful to improving your smile—visit your local dentist in Aliso Viejo, CA.