International Dentist Day (06/03)

Every year on March 6, many countries celebrate the professional holiday of dentists — International Dentist Day or Dentist's Day.

Dentistry — is one of the oldest branches of medicine. And no matter how we treat dentists, today, alas, we cannot do without visiting the office of this specialist in maintaining health. Only a small part of humanity manages to avoid the problems of diseased teeth, diseased gums, and malocclusion. The bulk of the world's population has suffered the fate of sitting in a dentist's chair at least once in their lives. Fortunately, science and technology are developing at such a rapid pace that over the past few decades, going to the dentist has become less and less like medieval execution.

The choice of the date of today's holiday was one of the outstanding inventions in dentistry. In 1790, John Greenwood, a Washington dentist and George Washington's personal dentist, invented dental boron.

The first dental bur was a weighty foot-driven drill, which did not stop Greenwood from making four removable dentures for Washington. Interestingly, Greenwood adapted the spinning wheel used by his mother as a foot drive for the bur. And only more than a century later, in 1907, an electric drill appeared.

Other «tooth» innovations include — the invention of toothpaste tube by Dr. Washington Sheffield, the release of the world's first toothbrush with artificial synthetic nylon fiber instead of natural bristles.

Particular attention is paid to the prevention of childhood caries (Photo: Tatyana Vyc, licensed from Shutterstock.com)

International Dentist Day was initially celebrated only in the United States, having the status of a national professional holiday. But over the years, the tradition of congratulating dentists on this day has spread far beyond North America. One of the first successor countries was India.

Today, lectures and educational work on the need for regular and careful dental care are considered indispensable events on this day. Particular attention is paid to the prevention of childhood caries.

As you know, February 9 is International Dentist Day, which traditionally coincides with the day of remembrance of St. Apollonia.



• Infographics – poster «6 March — International Dental Day» • Story «Smile for tooth fairy»

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