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February 13, 2004
"I brush, therefore I am."
Our friend Puff has posed an interesting question on the topic of dental hygiene.
We have become a society of pearly white teeth, clean breath and gingivitis avengers... Is this really an important topic? Is brushing before bed, and in the morning not good enough to keep those teeth black light reactive? Maybe a little mouthwash and floss will help keep the cavities at bay. So the questions posed are: Is brushing our teeth 3 times a day really necessary?~Stephen Puff
I like brushing my teeth--it gives me a nice, squeaky-clean feeling that I tend to associate with happiness. Yet, perhaps, as a society, we're in over our heads in the cleanliness thing... Maybe Puff is right to question the "3-times-a-day" rule. Then again, there will always be points arguing otherwise...
Earth is currently in a sad state of affairs. Its inhabitants are a confused bunch, worrying about such pettinesses as death, money, the lack of towels, and even the obscure concept of what is referred to on Earth as "fun". [They] have lost their identity because they no longer spend time thinking about... the importance of brushing teeth has been lost long ago.~Brushing Teeth (UnReal) Earth's Decay Due To Lack Of Dental Hygiene Okay, so maybe this is a bit of an extremist perspective about the wonders of dental hygiene... Yes, it's a bit of a humorous approach to the thought of your teeth falling out and being subjected to eating nothing but soft food for the rest of your life; nonetheless, a different approach than Mr. Puff has taken.
So what? Has the world gone mad because we're obsessed with cleanliness?
You may ask what I mean by obsession, but first, let me declare that I, as a member of the consuming community, am what you would call, by book definition, a "neat freak." However, our society is obsessed with cleanliness, insofar as developing new cleaning fluids and swiffer mops; packaging for food so it won't go bad, when, in fact, food is supposed to go bad at a point... (that's why it's called perishable); spawning new anti-bacterial this-that-or-the-other thing to nurse our growing phobia of bacteria and "germs;" and even impressing the image of a perfect smile (i.e. straight, brilliantly white teeth in a cleanly-brushed, minty smelling mouth), which is the battleground of wars such asListerine vs. gingivitis, floss vs. plaque, and orthodontics vs. natural tooth growth.
And what about those electric toothbrushes? And, even more, beyond the brush: flavored toothpaste, and a seemingly unending list of other whitening products.
It's far to easy to be sucked into this perpetual cycle of dental diety, but it's also simple to just brush twice a day. Don't let a good tooth go bad.
Posted by KarissaKilgore at February 13, 2004 10:57 AM
Comments
OH Kiz! I am the self-proclaimed brushing queen! Nothing wrong with a squeaky clean mouth... :) ....one more thing, Crest Whitestrips rock my world! You know what I mean!
-Miz :)
Posted by: Miz at February 14, 2004 10:51 PM
I have a new boyfriend who is obsesssed with brushing teeth before we snog
Posted by: ainos at December 27, 2007 11:15 AM