You'll Wonder Wear the Yeller' Went Quiz

Answer: Colgate

William Colgate established a soap and candle company in 1806. The paste was originally sold in jars beginning in 1873 and in 1896 collapsible tubes were invented. In 1953 Colgate merged with Palmolive and became Colgate-Palmolive Company.

Answer: rudimentary toothbrush

A "chewstick," is a natural toothbrush made from the twigs or roots of the Salvadora persica tree. Chewsticks have been used for over 7,000 years due to their antibacterial properties and fiber-rich composition, which effectively clean teeth and promote healthy gums. When one end of the stick becomes frayed, that end is used to brush the teeth.

Answer: boar hair

Early Chinese toothbrushes, from about 500 or 600 years ago contained bristles made of boar hair with the handle made of bamboo or bone. Hairs taken from the backs of male boars are especially long and coarse making them useful as bristles. Nylon bristles were introduced in 1938.
Boar's hair hairbrushes are widely used.

Answer: False

False. While toothbrushes came along 500-600 years ago, toothpaste was being used by ancient Egyptians around 3000 BC. It contained rock salt, mint, dried iris flower and pepper. The diet of early Egyptians didn't contain much sugar, so cavities were not so much of a problem.

Answer: packaging toothpaste in a squeezable tube

In the 1880s Dr. Washington Sheffield is credited with the idea of packing toothpaste in a squeezable tube. Previously toothpaste had been dispensed in everything from a box to a bottle. The American Dental Association says Dr. Sheffield's idea made for the mass-marketing and mass-production of toothpaste.

Answer: Crest

In 1955 Crest introduced the first toothpaste with fluoride. Research had shown that fluoride helped prevent cavities. Crest hired Norman Rockwell to draw ads showing boys and girls showing their parents their latest dental reports.

Answer: Portugal

The nuns of the Mosteiro de Lorvão in Coimbra, Portugal were the first to mass produce toothpicks. The nuns didn't use the toothpick for cleaning teeth, instead they were used to clean up sticky residue. Toothpicks from the Coimbra area were shipped all over Europe and the Americas. Specially made toothpicks became a status symbol in the 19th century.

Some contained precious stones and/or pearls. An American entrepreneur brought back the simple wooden toothpick, mass-produced it, and they're given away in restaurants.

Answer: silk

In the early part of the 19th century an American dentist recommended running "waxed silken thread" between the teeth. By the end of the 19th century commercially manufactured dental floss of waxed or unwaxed silk became available. Silk would eventually be replaced by nylon during WWII because of the scarcity of silk.

Answer: No

Tooth decay, or cavities are not inevitable, although it may seem so. More than 80% of humans will have had at least one cavity by their mid-30s. Good dental hygiene, brushing with fluoride, flossing, and eating and drinking less sugars will help prevent tooth decay.

Answer: halitosis

Prior to the introduction of "Listerine" and its ability to kill the germs that cause bad breath, bad breath was relatively commonplace. People were accustomed to it. Although for centuries societies had experimented with various ways of eliminating bad breath, the Romans used urine as a mouthwash, it wasn't until the mid-19th century that Dr. Joseph Lister developed a carbolic acid for surgical use to reduce the rate of infection. In 1879 Dr. Joseph Lawrence expanded Dr. Lister's formula to develop an antiseptic he called "Listerine", honoring Dr. Lister. In 1881 Dr. Lawrence teamed with a pharmacist named Joseph Lambert and began to market "Listerine" as an oral antiseptic.
In 1914 "Listerine" was made publicly available. It was marketed as a cure for halitosis.

Halitosis was deemed a nicer word than bad breath. The word stems from the Latin word "halitus" which means breath and the Greek suffix "-osis" meaning condition or process. The use of the word was almost non-existent until 1914 when its use shot up dramatically.