The history of mouthwash

When you think of mouthwash you're thinking of that funny colored stuff that has a noticeable alcohol smell masked by the scent of mint or some other artificial flavor to make it taste pleasant. Well, in fact mouthwash wasn't really invented until years later since many people used peroxide to rinse their mouth out and kill germs. It was about 3000 years ago that the first prototype of mouthwash was used when the ancient Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians would chew on plants like eucalyptus, and other plants that were used for spices like cinnamon and vanilla. They would also go as far as mixing the stuff with water and swishing it in their mouth and spitting it out. Other things they used was goats milk and animal blood which surely wouldn't run well in today's world because of how gross that sounds to drink milk and blood to freshen ones breath. Yet this was how the people who lived in ancient times had practiced oral health.

Mouthwash by many standards was what you did to keep your breath fresh after brushing your teeth, but it's gone through modifications in terms of ingredients to where it's stuff you would find in a science lab and endless preservatives and colors that you would find in a pack of Kool-Aid since the most common food dyes and coloring is Orange, Blue, Red, Yellow, and Green and you ingest that along with other chemicals. The history of this stuff has been a part of many households for since the day companies like Procter and Gamble and Unilever brought out mouthwashes from when peroxide was the choice in fighting the germs that caused unpleasant breath. Today newer more complex mouthwashes have been made ones that are made to help strengthen teeth by helping to improve dental enamel and lower gum irritation due to gingivitis or brushing too hard.

Pharmaceutical companies like Procter and Gamble and Johnson and Johnson's have yet to come out with mouthwash that's free of the excessive chemicals, but Crest came out with a mouthwash called Pro-Health and this is the first brand-name mouthwash that doesn't consist of alcohol since Crest only made toothpaste not mouthwash. They were trying to come out with something after most people complain about having an aftertaste in their mouth, which was due to the high alcohol content. Mouthwash has come a long way since 3000 years ago that was just a simple home remedy, but has since turned into a major product that's had many formulas made to suit different dental concerns. Yet nowadays the mouthwashes have also taken a new twist to the organic and holistic side of things by coming out with a mouthwash that contains natural ingredients like water, witch hazel, glycerin, Aloe Vera leaf juice, poloxamer 335 (a preservative), spearmint leaf oils, menthol, and ascorbic acid (Vitamin C). The products are also m oving towards being free of saccharin, artificially produced sweeteners, or animal by-products. Tom's of Maine who specialize in organic and natural health care products have a line of alcohol free mouthwash using natural ingredients.

This is in addressing the current trend of products aiming towards making oral care products that are made with natural ingredients to eliminate the toxic chemicals that are harmful and even dangerous to your health.