Everyone loves their teeth to be white! Almost white that is!
Now the trend is to have it as white as possible!
But actually when it is too white it actually looks scary! A little dirty white is the real deal! Then again yellow and brown is off putting!
But (the return of the but! Though it never went!); there were times when black teeth were the fashion! The way you would be recognised as important or even rich is with your black teeth!
The history of this in one place was SWEET!
In fact teeth blackening was a prominent beauty standard, status symbol, and rite of passage across parts of Asia and Europe for centuries!
In Japan in a place called Ohaguro this was practiced for over 1,000 years from the Heian period through the late 19th century!
A solution made from iron filings, vinegar, and vegetable tannins (Kanemizu) was applied to dye the teeth a glossy black!
It signified maturity, marriage, social status, and loyalty (used by samurai), and acted as a dental sealant against cavities!
You make them black before it becomes actually black!
Then in southeast Asia & Vietnam with history dated back thousands of years (such as in Vietnam since the Hùng Kings).
Here they used mixtures like iron and vinegar, charcoal, beeswax, or through the long-term habit of chewing betel quid (areca nut and slaked lime)! That of course is seen all over ASIA!
It apparently marked the transition into adulthood, protected against evil spirits (who were associated with white animal-like teeth), and showed refinement and beauty!
By the way this practice was not limited to the EASTERN world! Even apparently MODERN Elizabethan England also notes this practice!
Here of course the reason and history is a little different!
So during the 16th century, sugar became an expensive luxury imported via trade!
Then again it had its side effects!
Queen Elizabeth I and the wealthy consumed heavy amounts of sugar and used sugary toothpastes, causing severe tooth decay and black teeth!
But since only the elite could afford sugar, rotten and blackened teeth accidentally became a status symbol of wealth!
So if you have black teeth then you are either elite or rich or well a sugar trader!
So like all humans who like to copy success; many lower class (read middle class or even non elite!) used to artificially blacken their teeth to copy the TREND!
So if you have black teeth full of cavities; you are just an ELITE in the Elizabethan England (who now cannot afford a dental treatment!).
So that you have a nice bright smile! Which reminds me of Shakuntala Devi and her smile! Though she is more known for being a human computer!
Now that reason may not work all the time so do brush your teeth before you sleep!
Shubh ratri…
