Page 172 - My FlipBook

152 Tartar of the Teeth.
er says, that tartar acts chemically on the teeth : in conjunc-
tion with other agents, it most certainly does so, as is clearly
proved by the facts, that teeth which have been coated with
if, for a length of lime, are very generally found rough, dis-
colored and decomposing, and that external decay of the molar
t?eth generally commences near the gum, where the enamel
is thinest and tartar most apt to collect.
This substance is very productive of scurvy in the gum, by
collecting about the necks of the teeth, and by insinuating
itself deeply between the gum and sockets, causing inflamma-
tion and suppuration which gradually extends to the sockets.
Tartar seen about the front teeth is exceeding offensive to a
person of nice feelings it is also one principal cause of a
;
fetid breath, than which nothing is more disgusting.
OF THE MEANS TO BE USED TO KEEP THE TEETH
FREE OF TARTAR.
It is in the power of almost every person to keep his teeth
perfectly free of this substance, and it is to be wholly done by
mechanical means, which will be fully treated of under the
head of brushing the teeth, tooth powders, &c. Where there
is a great disposition to the formation of tartar, some dentists
recommend chemical agents for thi3 purpose, as acids or alkalis,
but the former are highly improper, as an acid which will act
upon the tartar, will also act upon the teeth, for both are prin-
cipally composed of the same materials, namely, the phos-
phate of lime : the latter are of little use, as they can only
act on the mucus or animal matter, which enters the compo-
sition of the tartar. Acids are ruinous to the teeth, not only
by dissolving the enamel, but by making the surface of them
rough, a state the most favorable possible for the collection
and retention of foreign matter, and its action on their substance
so as to produce decay.