A Good Start
As a direct result of water fluoridation and over-the-counter fluoride products, half of children entering the first grade today have never had a single cavity, compared with 36% in 1980 and 28% in the early 1970s. (Source: American Dental Association)

Keep Smiling, Hawaii
Only 14% of people 65 or older who live in Hawaii are completely toothless, a condition known as edentulism. In contrast, at least 48% of people of the same age in West Virginia have lost all their teeth, according to the survey of more than 27,000 people in 46 states.

Kick the Habit
Keeping your teeth longer is another reason to quit smoking. According to the ADA, 42% of daily smokers age 65 or older were completely toothless, compared with 29% of occasional smokers, 26% of former smokers and only 20% of never-smokers in the same age group.

Step Away From the Chips
Sugar is not the main enemy for teeth anymore. Americans eat too much, too often and the habit of "day-snacking" is causing more dental disease than the sugar content of the food being eaten.

Remember the Chicklet!
The defenders of the Alamo were the first to try chewing gum in America. They picked it up from the Mexicans. Thomas Adams, an American inventor, used chicle as the base for commercially based chewing gums. This is possibly how they came up with the brand name "Chicklets."

No Lie
George Washington's dentures were not made of wood (as common myth goes). They were made of ivory.

Eat the Whole Thing
You will get fewer cavities if you eat a bag of candy in one sitting and then brush your teeth than if you slowly eat the candy a piece at a time all day.

Rough Me Up
Unwaxed dental floss does pick up more plaque between the teeth than slick waxed varieties.

Wine Is Fine
The Egyptians first invented toothpaste some 5,000 years ago. It was a crude mixture of wine and pumice.

Were They Kosher?
The Chinese are credited with inventing the first toothbrushes in the late 1400s. The bristles were made of hog bristles.

Good Question
Mao Zedong, like many Chinese of his time, refused to brush his teeth. Instead, he rinsed his mouth with tea and chewed the leaves. Why brush? "Does a tiger brush his teeth?" argued Mao.

Can't Always Get What You Want
Mick Jagger had an emerald chip put in the middle of his upper right incisor, but people thought it was spinach. He changed it to a ruby until he got tired of people discussing the drop of blood on his tooth. Jagger finally settled on a diamond.

Radio Head
False teeth are often radioactive. Half of all dentures are made of a porcelain compound laced with minute amounts of uranium to stimulate fluorescence. Without the uranium additive, the dentures would be a dull green color when seen under artificial light.

Pass the Cheese, Please
Certain cheeses, including aged cheddar, Swiss and Monterey Jack, have been found to protect teeth from decay.

Sweeter Than Sugar
An obscure Mexican plant, the Lippa dulcis, has been found to be about 1,000 times sweeter than table sugar, doesn't cause tooth decay, and in the future, could serve as the source of a low-calorie sweetener.