Everyone desires a set of bright, strong teeth. But how much do you know about caring for and protecting them?
Protecting Teeth Starts with Nourishing Bones
Traditional Chinese Medicine holds that teeth and bones share the same origin, with kidney essence as their foundation. Thus, protecting teeth begins with nourishing bones.
An ancient saying goes: "Teeth are the residue of bones," meaning teeth are the skeletal extension reaching the body's surface.Bones contain bone marrow, and teeth contain dental pulp. Both bone marrow and dental pulp draw their nourishment from the kidneys. Since the kidneys govern the storage of essence, and essence transforms into marrow, abundant kidney essence ensures plentiful marrow. This results in strong, resilient bones and sturdy teeth that resist loosening.When kidney essence is deficient, marrow dries up, failing to nourish bones and teeth. Children may experience delayed fontanelle closure, weak bones, and delayed teething; adults may develop osteoporosis, brittle bones, loose teeth, or even tooth loss.
"Among all methods of preserving health, none surpasses strengthening the teeth." Frail elders or children with congenital deficiencies particularly require tonifying the kidneys and enriching essence to nourish bones and fortify teeth. The following methods may be selected as appropriate:
Drinking Jade Elixir. Oral saliva is transformed from kidney essence, and saliva in turn nourishes kidney essence—hence its name "jade elixir."The Tang Dynasty physician Sun Simiao developed the "Drinking Jade Nectar" method: upon waking, press the tongue against the upper palate to gather saliva throughout the mouth, then slowly swallow it to nourish kidney essence. Chew Thoroughly. Mastication is also vital for strengthening teeth.During daily meals, avoid overly soft foods. Instead, chew foods of appropriate hardness to strengthen the jawbone and protect teeth. Regularly tap your teeth. This simple yet effective dental care practice involves gently tapping your upper and lower teeth together rhythmically before or after meals, producing a faint sound. Perform ten taps each morning, noon, and night, gradually increasing the number and intensity.
Dietary therapy. Many foods nourish kidney essence and strengthen bones and teeth, such as Chinese yam, goji berries, walnuts, black sesame seeds, and mulberries. Incorporate these into your regular diet.
Herbal supplementation. For those with yin deficiency constitution exhibiting symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats, or a red tongue with little coating, Liuwei Dihuang Pills may be taken.Those with a yang deficiency constitution, exhibiting symptoms like pale complexion, cold hands and feet, aversion to cold, and pale lips, may use Jinkui Shenqi Pills. Children and the elderly can use Longmu Zhuanggu Granules or Xianling Gubao Capsules. Regular Massage. After dinner each day, wash your fingers and use your index finger to rotate and massage the gums, promoting blood circulation.The gums are like the soil surrounding tree roots; healthy gums ensure strong teeth.
Massage Acupoints to Protect Teeth
Regularly massaging key kidney meridian points like Taixi (KI3) and Yongquan (KI1) can nourish the kidneys, replenish essence, strengthen the body, and fortify teeth. Points such as Yingxiang (LI20), Chengjiang (CH2), Jiache (ST6), Xiaguan (ST6), and Hegu (LI4) also offer dental protection.
Method:
1. Use thumbs or index fingers to knead the Yingxiang, Chengjiang, Jiache, and Xiaguan points on the face, along with the Hegu points at the web of each hand, for about 30 seconds each to promote circulation;
2. Press and massage the Yongquan point on the sole of the foot and the Taixi point on the inner ankle for 5–10 minutes, 1–2 times daily, to nourish kidney essence;
3. Keep four fingers together and gently massage around the lips at a moderate pace until warmth is felt, which helps protect the gums.Additionally, tapping your teeth 100 times each morning and evening is highly beneficial for strengthening teeth.
How Did Ancient People Care for Their Teeth?
Ancient people also brushed their teeth. Before the invention of toothbrushes, oral hygiene primarily involved rinsing with solutions like saltwater, strong tea, or wine.
Sun Simiao's Tang Dynasty text Essential Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold Records states: "Each morning, place a pinch of salt in your mouth and swish with warm water... to keep teeth strong and firm." The Book of Rites: Inner Rules also records: "At the first crow of the rooster, all wash their faces."
The Sui Dynasty's Chao Yuanfang, in his Treatise on the Origins of Various Diseases, noted: "After meals, one should routinely rinse the mouth several times; failing this, it leads to tooth decay." The Song Dynasty's Zhang Dai, in his Discourses on Medicine, observed: "People's daily care is often misplaced. Rinsing the mouth upon waking is less effective than rinsing before bed, which removes accumulated debris between the teeth and keeps them strong."Rinsing the mouth served as a substitute for brushing teeth in ancient times before the invention of the toothbrush. The earliest dental cleaning tool in China was the willow twig. During the late Tang Dynasty, people would soak willow twigs in water and bite them open with their teeth when needed, giving rise to the ancient saying "morning chewing of toothwood." Li Shizhen also noted that tender willow twigs, "shaved into tooth sticks, are most effective for cleaning teeth."
However, historical records indicate that bristle-tipped toothbrushes emerged during the Liao and Song dynasties. Zhou Shouzhong's Song-era text "Compendium of Health Preservation" records: "Toothbrushes were all made from horsehair." Additionally, bone toothbrush handles discovered in Liao-era tombs represent the world's earliest physical evidence of toothbrushes, dating back over 1,000 years.
Ancient people also used toothpaste. The Song Dynasty text Taiping Shenghui Fang, compiled by Wang Huaiyin and others, describes a medicinal paste for teeth: "Boil willow, locust, and mulberry branches into a decoction, reduce to a paste, add ginger juice and Asarum, then use to brush teeth." This can be considered the prototype of modern medicinal toothpaste. Yet for ordinary people, salt remained the most common toothpaste in daily life.
Ancient people also performed dental fillings. China's first nationally promulgated pharmacopoeia, the Newly Revised Materia Medica (659 AD), records the use of silver paste—a compound of white tin, silver foil, and mercury—as a dental filling material. This represents not only China's earliest but also the world's earliest documented use of amalgam for dental restoration.The Song Dynasty texts Taiping Shenghui Fang and Shengji Zonglu detailed methods for reimplanting teeth, a procedure then known as "re-settling."
Ancient Chinese valued dental health. Traditional Chinese medicine holds that "teeth are the surplus of bones," meaning teeth form from the excess bone material produced after the body's primary bone formation. The quality and abundance of bone depend entirely on the sufficiency of kidney essence and qi. Therefore, nourishing kidney qi is the best way to maintain dental health.