Daily Yellowstone journal., 1889-09-18
THE DEADLY TooTHPlcK.
A Physician and a Dentist Say That Chew
lug Tooihpicks is u Bad Habit.

n fnyslclan ana a DENTIST say lnat NEW
iIg ~Toothpicks Is bad Habit
"Do you know" said a physician to
a Herald man yesterday, that the
great American habit of toothpick
chewing is responsible for a great
number of human illsi' The young
man was more than surprised. He
said he'd be glad to learn just how
those evils are wrought by the appar-
emily harmless and indispensable tooth.
pick.
well" said the physician, "of
course ! refer more particularly to the
practice Of chewing wooden TOOTH
picks. And when ! modify nay state
ment in this way | don't have any
hesitation in reiterating that the
wooden toOthpick is an engine of de-
struction. If you have ever noticed
these things much you have observed
that a good many people who take
tAelrmcI.sa al restaurants or hotelcatcS
and rush out immediately afterward TO
business, snatch on the way IA tooth
pick. sometimes several Of them, and
thrust the little wooden spears into
the mouth. In nine cases out of ten
they don't use the toothpick quickly
and MS n matter of business, but they
retain IT in the mouth after all neces-
sity for its function has ceased. They
chew on ii and wabble it about under
the jaws, and finally the piece of wood
isrcauced To a ragged pulp, and then it
is usually cast away. Very frequent
ly small particles of the wood are swal.
lowed, aud ! know one man who was
in the habit Of eating his toothpick.
| became acquainted with him, because
lac wanted me to give him something
TO heal his stomach, which WAS really
in "A lacgatcd condition. The small
particles Of food that are swallowed
frequently lodge in the walls Of the
stomach somewhere, and induce gas
trio disturbance. | know several
cases which proved fatal. A man may
go on chewing toothpicks for fifty
years and never suffer any i'll effects,
but his less fortunate neighbor may
chew them for a few days aud die on
account Of il. | tell you a fact when
/ say that lots Of trouble with the di-
gestiye apparatus and lots of more
serious ailments may be, and have
been by me in many instances, traced
TO the use Of toothpicks as l have
pointed out. The habit, l notice, is
one that is growing rapidly, and,
aside from the fact that it is an i'll
bred and rude custom, it is to be de.
tested on hygienic principles. / found
out the other day that some restau.
rants dip their toothpicks in some arc.
matte fluid, like cinnamon, and this
tends 10 cause a big spread Of the
toothpick chewing habit. The per1n
whoputs n Of these prepared sticks
in his mouth can hardly resist the
temptation TO chew on il. It's an aw'
full habit, and I'D like 10 see people
stop itp
The Herald man saw his friend the
dentist yesterday, and told him about
the physicians warning and advice,
and asked him what he thought about
it, "N H." lac said, smiling. II dom
know hal ought 10 talk Of such
thing. II we fellows give the public
too much advice, where will our trade
come FRONT The fact is, the habit o.
tootbpiCk chewing brings the DENTS
lots Of customers. Ia a long practice
I've seen how very destructive anC
dangerous the wooden toothpick il
when Cbewed. 1t destroys the gum
and the teeth, its chewed lbers LAGER
alto the bronchial passages, get int
the throat and head, and indure ca
tarrh, bad breath and general disfg
urement Of the mouth. II l were
philanthropist instead OF dentist,
should advise everybody TO avoi,
chewing toothpicks. boston Herald