What makes sharks such finely tuned biting machines? Their choppers, of course. In honour of Shark Month at the Discovery Channel, we’ve compiled a list of fun facts about shark teeth. Sink your teeth into these nuggets: The outside of…
The Planet of the Apes returns… for another root canal
A gorilla named Oscar Jonesey, or O.J., was knocked out and taken for treatment to the San Francisco Zoo hospital. Once at the hospital, the western lowland gorilla underwent a three-hour root canal procedure to save an abscessed tooth. The…
Woody Allen and the art of dentistry
As the Toronto Globe and Mail reports, some dentists are miffed that Woody Allen’s latest flick, Blue Jasmine, portrays dentists in a less-than-flattering light. Woody Allen’s obsession with dentists actually goes way back. His 1978 short story, “If the Impressionists…
Watch the Ikea monkey brush his teeth
Not only is the Ikea monkey a sharp dresser… he’s also got great teeth cleaning skills. Darwin, the Japanese macaque known in Toronto and around the word as the “Ikea monkey,” demonstrates his tooth brushing technique in a video posted…
For healthy teeth, say cheese
Who knew that cheese could be so mysterious? Scientists know that eating cheese will protect your teeth against cavities and acid damage… but they’re not sure why. What we do know: We know that eating cheese increases the calcium level…
A root canal saved this tiger’s tooth from extinction
Tigers are just like humans: the older they are, the more likely they are to have issues with their teeth. In the wild, an older tiger with a dental emergency probably wouldn’t survive, since he wouldn’t be able to catch…
Your gums don’t think lip piercing is cool
You might think lip piercings are cool, but your gums don’t agree. Here’s the thing: having a lip piercing can make your gums shrink back from your teeth. Gum recession can lead to gum disease, which can cause otherwise healthy…
This patient cannot bear to get a root canal
In the wild, a polar bear with a broken or infected tooth would probably die. But Arktos, a 4-year-old male polar bear at Highland Wildlife Park in Scotland, was lucky. One day, the zookeepers noticed that the normally playful bear…
Don’t spit that gum out of your mouth
Chewing gum has traditionally gotten a bad rap. It’s not considered proper for adults to chew gum in public, and kids can get into trouble for chewing gum in school. But scientists have long known that chewing gum is actually…
How to convince a queen to have a tooth extracted
Other historical eras can seem more appealing than our own. If you yearn for simpler times, then you might wish you lived in early 20th century Canada, in a town like the one described by Stephen Leacock in “Sunshine Sketches…
