Thanks to the wonders of Modern Cosmetic Dentistry in Chicago, you no longer have to resort to ancient cosmetic dental
procedures that were less than pleasant.
Thousands of years ago, the Romans and Greeks
would use urine to whiten their teeth, while other civilizations would mix pumice
with vinegar to brighten their pearly whites.
Barbers started to get into the act back in
1130 when they began to assist with dental procedures. In 1210, Barbers formed
a guild that consisted of dental hygienists and dental surgeons. Oral surgery
performed by barbers was discontinued in the 1400’s but they still performed oral
hygiene services including tooth whitening. Barbers would file down a patients
tooth before coating it with acid. Of course, this method of tooth whitening
worked quite well, but it eventually destroyed the tooth’s enamel.
Dental Implants are the second oldest form of
cosmetic dentistry with oral surgery topping the list. According to your Cosmetic Dentist in Chicago, root form implants were used over 4000 years ago with the
Chinese tapping pegs made from carved bamboo into the bone. Archaeologists have
uncovered Ancient Egyptian mummies that have transplanted teeth made from
precious metals, ivory and human teeth.
When Cosmetic Dentists tried to use human
teeth for dental implants in the 1700s, they soon discovered that the body
would reject any such implant almost immediately. Dentists decided to put metal
into the tooth sockets to replace missing teeth, but unfortunately, that didn’t
work too well either.
2,500 years ago, Native Americans were very
sophisticated when it came to dentistry. The Mayans and other tribes in southern North America would go to early cosmetic dentists to have grooves and
notches put into their teeth in order to show off semiprecious stones such as
jade, obsidian and turquoise. According to anthropologist Jose Concepcion
Jimenez, the men sported the fancy grills from all walks of life. Meant for
decoration they did not mark any social class. In fact, the Red Queen, a Mayan
mummy discovered in the Palenque Temple did not have any tooth decorations at
all.
