The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1910-07-27
ORAL HYGIENE
BY DIR. w. H. HoyI.

! 1t is SalQ IN the DeSlnnlnS GOQ
created man, created him in his own
image; therefore perfect; after which
he rested. Later some one added to
! this statement: After the Lord
rested He created woman, and since
then neither God, man nor the devil
has rested" Personally l am glad
He created woman, as l have never
desired a rest.
A few years ago a prominent bac-
teriologist discovered micro-organic
life, and from then to this day the
scientific world has been busy en-
deavoring to classify the genealogy
of this most interesting family,
The greatest problem today which
concerns the medical and dental pro-
fessions alike is oral hygiene. The
mouth being the gateway to the body
is the nucleus of the disease and in
our fight on bacteria let us begin
at the beginning and make the" oral
cavity perfect. My statement that
the mouth is the gateway to the body,
therefore the nucleus of many dis
eases will not be disputed.
Dentistry is a branch Of medicine,
and for years the medical profession
has been content to leave its care
sorely in our hands, Hence, the
oral cavity in its great Importance
has not been brought before the pub
lie as often as it should.
So few articles on oral hygiene
have been written that the general
a,,J1
mouth is the habitat of disease germs
which are a menace to their general
health. l wish to impress the fact
that the filth in a decayed tooth is
not only a menace TO the health Of
the individual himself, but to every
one with whom he comes in contact.
A compilation of statistics reveal
the fact that from ninety-two to
ninety-fve per cent. of our school
children have defective teeth. Pro-
fessOr Osler has said IF | were
asked to say whether more physical
deterioration was produced by al
cohol or defective teeth | should I'M
hesitatingly say defective teeth.
Frederic Treves, the distinguished
surgeon, says: Everybody seems
little more careful about their teeth
they would not need to be so careful
about their diet"
These are facts which have been
known to the dental profession for
years, yet when made by such emil
nent authorities from another pro-
fession it startled the reading world
Mr.. Horace Fletcher, a layman, by his
writing and lectures upon thorough
masticatiOn, has done more toward
concentrating the mind of the gen
eral public upon the oral cavity than
the whole of the dental profession
The prophylaCtic study of micro
organic life has reduced by fifty per
cent. the death rate from typhoid fe-
yer. By the way, typhoid fever is
communicative disease, and a dis
eased mouth plays a most important
part in its communicativeness The
death rate from diptheria has been
reduced by so per cent, but still
there are 10000 lives lost annually
from this malady.
Most of this reduction has been
obtained from the study of bacte-
riolOgy and sanitation, with little or
no thought directed toward the oral
cavity. 1t is now an undisputed fact
that the oral cavity is the greatest
of all harbingers of pathogenic mi
cro-Organic life, and is the portal
through which these germs enter the
human system.
In making an examination of the
mouth of the average person there
will be found one or more decayed
teeth. A discharging abscess tooth
is not uncommon, and most frequent
ly in persons Of middle age one or
more teeth affected with pyorrhoea
alveolaris Riggs disease, commonly
known as a loose tooth with a re-
ceding gum. Seldom is seen a child
between the ages of six and ten years
without a decayed tooth or an alb
scessed one.
A decayed tooth is a cesspool of
bacteria, often malignant. A good
name for an alveolar abscess is "puss
geyser.' During the act of degluti-
ton myraids of puss germs are swal-
! lowed, often producing Immediately
intestinal arrangement. In Pyor-
rhoea Alveolaris, Riggs disease, there
is a constant oxidation of puss, and
most common among the disorders
thus produced is tonsillitis.
When the American people, to-
gether with the scientific world. re-
alize that the teeth are most potent
in this fight on bacteria the spread
OF communicative diseases, together
with the death rate will he D1a+a-