History Of Dentistry: Understanding The Evolution Of The Dentistry Profession
The history of dentistry as a profession goes as far back as 5500 BC to 7000 BC. Ancient records show that as early as this time, people already showed some holes from dental drills in their teeth, clear evidence that teeth restoration and other dental treatments were already being practiced during this time. Nobody is really sure where the history of the dentistry profession begins. However, most of the records recovered about dentistry in the olden times were found around the areas of Egypt, India, China and Japan which lead the historians to believe that dentistry actually started somewhere around these areas.
Tooth Extraction
The history of dentistry is filled with accounts of people having bad teeth. The belief that tooth worms attack the teeth and destroy it was quite popular in the ancient times and tooth extraction was often considered as the only solution to the problem. Tooth extraction was considered as the primary dentistry procedure in past. They did not really have the technology to do root canals and other dental surgeries in the past so whenever a person comes to the dentist with a toot decay that is considered as too advanced for filling; the dentist has no other option but to extract the tooth. Since there was still no anesthesia at that time, according to the history of dentistry, the dentists in the olden times use herbs to reduce the pain during these procedures. They also use herbs to help the wounds from the tooth extraction heal faster.
Dental Extraction As A Form Of Punishment
Although the history of dentistry is focused more on taking care of the teeth, we find occasional references of teeth extraction as a form of punishment in some of the old records. The Code of Hammurabi specifically referred to tooth extraction as part of punishment. The idea of dental extraction is really quite intriguing considering the fact that our ancestors usually impose more brutal punishments on criminals. The idea of tooth extraction as a form of punishment leads some writers and historians to believe that this procedure is done more to disfigure a person than to exact a painful punishment. Their arguments are actually based on the premise that the people in the olden times value teeth as a thing of beauty. Note that even before cosmetic dentistry became popular, people have already taken an aesthetic view on pearly white teeth. Moreover, perfect teeth in the culture represents good health thus when a person loses his or her teeth, he is now considered as ugly or sick.
