Invention of the Toothbrush

Blogger: Amber Lemus

Bunches of teeth cleaning twigs- India
Photo By Harvinder Chandigarh CC BY-SA 4.0

Happy New Year everyone! As the New Year approached, I was thinking about goals or resolutions for the year, and one of them involved helping my toddler improve his oral hygiene skills. LOL. So that led me to today's topic.

Today we are delving into the history behind the toothbrush. It's another one of those unsung heroes that we don't even think about most of the time.

Since bad breath has been a concern since the beginning of time, so has oral hygiene. Ancient civilizations began coming up with ways to clean the teeth, or at least mask the foul smells that can arise from poor oral hygiene.

Ancient Egyptian and Babylonian cultures seem to have been the first to employ a tool to clean teeth. They chewed on twigs or sticks from particular trees. These ancient toothbrushes were referred to as chew sticks and were often flavored with natural astringents like salt or a specific kind of plant extract. Some of these chew sticks have been found in Egyptian tombs, so apparently, they believed that bad breath still exists in the afterlife.

Chewsticks are still popular in some cultures today. In the Islamic world, the use of chew sticks called miswaks are considered a pious action and are prescribed to be used before prayer five times per day.

Miswak Sticks
By Iqbal Osman - Flickr, CC BY 2.0

Bristled toothbrushes didn't appear until the 15th century. Chinese inventors created a toothbrush that had hog bristles fastened to a handle. Some of these handles were made from tiger bone. Which leaves this author wondering about what the significance of that was, and about the person whose occupation was to kill tigers to harvest their bones for things like...toothbrushes.

Song dynasty (960–1279) toothbrush handles made of tiger bone

By Aldermanseven - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0

In the 17th and 18th centuries, this style of toothbrush traveled to Europe and gained popularity. However, the modern toothbrush as we know it today did not exist until the late 18th century. The inventor of this modern marvel will surprise you.

Toothbrush said to have been used by Napoleon with horsehair bristles. c 1795
Photo By Science Museum London / Science and Society Picture Library CC BY-SA 2.0

It was the late 18th century. An Englishman named William Addis landed in jail for inciting a riot. Since he had plenty of time on his hands, and a need for improved hygiene in prison, he put his mind to work on a way to clean his teeth. According to the legend, he saved a small animal bone from his meal and carved it into handle. Next, he drilled holes into it, inserted boar bristles he obtained from a guard, and held them in place with either wire or glue. After he got out of prison in 1780, Addis started mass-producing his contraption. They became popular and Addis died a wealthy man, leaving his toothbrush manufacturing company to his son. It stayed in the family all the way up to 1996.

In 1938 the DuPont company developed the first toothbrush with nylon fibers. Nylon was sturdier and more efficient than animal bristles. But in the United States, at least, brushing one's teeth regularly didn't become a widespread practice until after WWII when soldiers returned home indoctrinated with military hygiene habits.

As a Colorado native, I can't end this article without mentioning that the electric toothbrush was first invented in the early 20th century by a Colorado-based dentist, Dr. Scott H. Forbes. However, it was not until the 1960s that the electric toothbrush became more widely available and popular.

What kind of toothbrush do you like to use?

Are you setting any goals or resolutions for 2024? I'd love to hear them.

*****

Two-time winner of the Christian Indie Award for historical fiction, Amber Lemus inspires hearts through enthralling tales She has a passion for travel, history, books and her Savior. This combination results in what her readers call "historical fiction at its finest".

She lives near the Ozarks in her "casita" with her prince charming. Between enjoying life as a boy mom, and spinning stories out of soap bubbles, Amber loves to connect with readers and hang out on Goodreads with other bookish peoples.

Amber is a proud member of the American Christian Fiction Writers Association. Visit her online at http://www.amberlemus.com/ and download a FREE story by subscribing to her Newsletter!

How Clumsiness and Boy Scouts made the Band-Aid

Blogger: Amber Lemus

Earle Dickson as a young man
Johnson & Johnson Archives
Used under Fair Use

I love reading about inventions because the stories are always entertaining. Either it was a funny accident, an inspirational story of perseverance, or an ingenious solution to a problem most people skim over. For example, did you know the Band-Aid was invented for a woman who was clumsy, especially in the kitchen?

Earle Dickson was born October 10, 1892 in Grandview, Tennessee. In 1917, Earle married Josephine Frances Knight. He was working at the Johnson and Johnson company as a cotton buyer, while his wife stayed at home keeping house. However, he quickly discovered that dear Josephine was constantly burning her fingers, nicking them with knives, or having some type of mishap around the house. She must have complained to him about the difficulty of bandaging up those minor wounds by herself while she was at home alone everyday, because he quickly came up with a solution.

Earle took a patch of gauze and affixed it to the center of surgical tape. He then used a band of crinoline to keep the tape from sticking to itself. What resulted was an easy-to-use bandage that his wife could easily use by herself to cover those injuries and prevent infection or further tearing of the skin. It worked wonderfully.

When Earle went back to work at Johnson and Johnson, he mentioned his solution to a coworker, who thought it was genius. The coworker encouraged him to take the idea to management and see if they would be interested in it. Initially, the managers at J&J were not impressed, but when Earle demonstrated that he could apply the bandage by himself to his own wounds, they saw that as a great feature. His supervisor told one of the Johnson brothers about the idea, who decided to adopt it and released the product to the public in 1921 under the brand of the Band-Aid. 

Early Ad for the Band-Aid
Johnson & Johnson Archives
Used under Fair Use

During this time, Johnson and Johnson were already successful producers of gauze and bandages for hospitals as well as military installations, so they had a built in market for this new product. Still, the first launch of the product was mostly a flop. Only $3,000 worth of the product was sold during the first year of production. Some believe that the reason it didn't initially take off was because the first versions of the Band-Aid were 2.5 inches wide by 18 inches long. The idea was that you could cut off whatever length of bandage you required for your injury.

Sales remained low, until someone came up with the idea of providing free, unlimited Band-Aids to the Boy Scout troops across the country. With the Boy Scouts using them, they became widely known and the demand for the Band-Aid soared.

In 1924, the Johnson and Johnson company started pre-cutting the Band-Aids into select sizes. Then in 1939, they began producing them as fully-sterilized bandages, just in time for WWII.

As for Earle Dickson, he was promoted for his invention and climbed to the rank of Vice President of the Johnson and Johnson company. He also became a member of the board, where he remained until his death in 1961, at which time the company was producing more than 30 million dollars worth of Band-Aids per year.

Today, more than 100 Billion Band-Aides have been produced and they have become one of the worlds most iconic and innovative products.

In recognition of his invention, Earle Dickson was inducted into the Inventor's Hall of Fame in 2017.

*****

Two-time winner of the Christian Indie Award for historical fiction, Amber Lemus inspires hearts through enthralling tales She has a passion for travel, history, books and her Savior. This combination results in what her readers call "historical fiction at its finest".

She lives near the Ozarks in her "casita" with her prince charming. Between enjoying life as a boy mom, and spinning stories out of soap bubbles, Amber loves to connect with readers and hang out on Goodreads with other bookish peoples.

Amber is a proud member of the American Christian Fiction Writers Association. Visit her online at http://www.amberlemus.com/ and download a FREE story by subscribing to her Newsletter!

Doctor Charles R. Drew, Inventor of the Blood Bank

Blogger: Amber Lemus

By Associated Photographic Services, Inc
- National Library of Medicine

Continuing our series on lesser-known inventors, today we learn about Dr. Charles R. Drew, the American surgeon who pioneered the techniques for blood storage, which is why he is known as the "Father of the Blood Bank."


Charles Drew was born June 3, 1904 in Washington D.C. He was the son of a carpet layer and a teacher, the oldest of four children. They grew up in the Foggy Bottom neighborhood and from a young age, Drew began working as a newspaper delivery boy.

Charles was able to attend Dunbar High School, which was an advantage for him because the school was known for its equality and opportunities for all students, regardless of the racial issues of the time. Although he still experienced hostility from opposing teams, and was passed over for the position of Captain of the team, even though he was the best player. After high school, Drew won an athletics scholarship, but a biology professor ignited his interest in medical science. Further education would be expensive, so Charles became a biology and chemistry professor to earn money to pursue his next goal, medical school. He also served as an athletics coach.

Charles's High School Yearbook Entry
Public Domain

When he was ready to pursue his medical career, circumstances led Charles to McGill's medical school in Montreal, Canada. He excelled in his class, winning multiple honors and scholarships. It was here that he met Dr. John Beattie, a doctor at Montreal Hospital who was studying the correlations between shock therapy and blood transfusions. Charles interned with Doctor Beattie while earning his surgical residency at the hospital.

Still, Charles career path was fraught with difficulty and racial discrimination. He intended to further his research on blood transfusions at Mayo Clinic, but was barred from going so because their practices didn't allow black scholars. So instead, he went to Columbia University, where he won a fellowship to train with eminent surgeon, Allen Whipple. However, he was still assigned to a non-traditional path which deprived him of some of the assets afforded to his white peers, such as direct access to patients. He was, however, able to continue his study of blood storage and transfusions. He eventually managed to prove himself and his intellect, and his superiors began to respect his brilliance.


In 1940, Charles wrote a doctoral thesis on "Banked Blood: A Study on Blood Preservation". It was through this research that Charles discovered that blood could be preserved two months longer by de-liquefying it. This paper earned him the honor of becoming the first African American to earn the Doctor of Science in Medicines degree at Columbia University.

Illustration of Charles Drew from the National Archives
Public Domain

This quote from the American Chemical Society article explains how important this breakthrough was.

"Dr. Charles Richard Drew broke barriers in a racially divided America to become one of the most important scientists of the 20th century. His pioneering research and systematic developments in the use and preservation of blood plasma during World War II not only saved thousands of lives, but innovated the nation’s blood banking process and standardized procedures for long-term blood preservation and storage techniques adapted by the American Red Cross." ~ACS biography of Charles R. Drew

In February of 1941, Charles was appointed as Director of the first American Red Cross blood bank. He also invented mobile blood donation centers, which greatly increased prospective blood donation. However, this appointment was short lived. The two greatest buyers of the blood were the US Navy and US Army, who refused African-American blood. They later decided to accept it, but only if it was stored separately from blood from white donors. Charles objected to this exclusion, stating that it had absolutely no scientific foundation. He resigned his post in 1942 in protest.

“While one must grant at once that extraordinary talent, great intellectual strength and unusual opportunity are necessary to break out of this prison of the Negro problem, we believe that the Negro in the field of physical sciences has not only opened a small passageway to the outside world, but is carving a road in many untrod areas, along which later generations will find it more easy to travel. The breaching of these walls and the laying of this road has not been, and is not easy.” — Charles Drew

Charles stated that his greatest mission in life, and what he considered to be his greatest accomplishment, was training young African-American surgeons who would meet the most rigorous standards in any surgical field, and in turn place them in strategic positions throughout the country where they could nurture the tradition of excellence.


Charles career was full of honors both in academics and research. He was granted the Springard Medal by the NAACP for his work on British-American projects in 1944. He also received honorary doctorate degrees in the sciences from Virginia State College in 1945, followed by Amherst in 1947. However he died without being accepted as a member of the American Medical Association, since African-American physicians were still excluded.

Doctor Charles Drew was still campaigning against such exclusions when he tragically died in 1950 after sustaining fatal injuries in a car accident. He was only 46 years old, but he left a life-saving legacy behind.

*****

Two-time winner of the Christian Indie Award for historical fiction, Amber Lemus inspires hearts through enthralling tales She has a passion for travel, history, books and her Savior. This combination results in what her readers call "historical fiction at its finest".

She lives near the Ozarks in her "casita" with her prince charming. Between enjoying life as a boy mom, and spinning stories out of soap bubbles, Amber loves to connect with readers and hang out on Goodreads with other bookish peoples.

Amber is a proud member of the American Christian Fiction Writers Association. Visit her online at http://www.amberlemus.com/ and download a FREE story by subscribing to her Newsletter!