Weird and amazing facts about the mouth
We use our mouths all the time. We speak, chew, swallow, smile, grin, stick out our tongue and…!
Also, the process of digesting food starts from your mouth, because the mouth is right at the beginning of the digestive system.
So, let's discuss some weird and wonderful facts about the mouth.
You produce a lot more saliva than you think
Saliva is produced by the glands in your mouth and even thinking about food and smelling or seeing it can be enough to make you drool!
Saliva helps keep the mouth moist and protects the gums and teeth and removes waste from the mouth.
Saliva also plays a role in the digestion process; Because it contains the amylase enzyme that helps break down carbohydrates.
On average, you produce approximately 0.5 milliliters of saliva per minute, or 720 milliliters per day.
If we multiply this amount by 80 years, we produce about 21,000 liters of saliva during our lifetime, which is enough for about 260 baths.
Some people produce more glitter, enough to fill two swimming pools!
Your teeth are unique
There are different parts of the body that are unique to each of us.
Your fingerprints, iris (colored part of the eye) and teeth are special and there is only one of them in the world.
No one else has teeth exactly like yours, which is why dental records are often used in forensics to help solve crimes.
We have been brushing our teeth for thousands of years
Brushing and oral hygiene have been a part of human history since the ancient Babylonians and Egyptians.
Historians have found that humans used worn branches to brush their teeth in the past.
Also, in the 15th century, the Chinese used a toothbrush made of bone or wood with bristles and animal hair.
In the 18th century, more modern style toothbrushes were invented in Britain.
The sense of taste is very complex
The sense of taste depends more on the sense of smell. If you hold your breath or are sick, you will experience the taste of food differently.
The sense of taste relies on the combination of smell and taste.
You taste food through your tongue's taste buds, which can detect salty, sweet, bitter, sour, and umami tastes.
But you can't taste without saliva, because saliva acts as a solvent, dissolving the ingredients you want to taste and carrying the food particles to your tongue.
Your mouth is home to millions of bacteria
You may have heard of the gut microbiome, the bacteria we all have in our guts.
But you may not know that your mouth also hosts millions of bacteria.
In fact, there are more bacteria in your mouth than the population on Earth!
It is estimated that our mouth contains about 20 billion microbes from about 500 to 650 different species.
Protection and cultivation of beneficial bacteria and healthy microbiome in the body is very important.
