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wtf: romans used pee to whiten teeth
ancient romans used to use both human and animal urine as mouthwash in order to whiten their teeth.
jan 29 2020
1 minute read
the romans contributed greatly to civilization — roads, cement, aqueducts, the postal service — but not all of their creations lived to the present day, and some deservedly so.
ancient romans used to use both human and animal urine as mouthwash in order to whiten their teeth. the thing is, it actually works, it’s just gross. our urine contains ammonia, a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen, that is capable of acting as a cleansing agent. today, ammonia is an ingredient in cleaning products most useful for glass, porcelain, stainless steel and getting baked-on grime off of your oven, for example.
there existed public jars in which romans could relieve themselves. the citizens waited until the urine was sterile and dissolved into ammonia. when full, they were collected and taken to a fullonica, or laundry, to be diluted with water and poured onto dirty clothes. the urine collectors were taxed due to the smell. someone was then paid to stomp on the clothes.
part of a verse from the roman poet catullus, insulting a man named egnatius , reads “now you’re spanish: in the country of spain what each man pisses, he’s used to brushing his teeth and red gums with, every morning, so the fact that your teeth are so polished just shows you’re the more full of piss.”
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despite not being all that clean otherwise, romans placed great value on pearly whites. at the same time, the common insult upon seeing someone with shiny teeth was that they were “full of piss.”
often, they would mix the urine with goat’s milk. their toothpastes were just as strange — author, philosopher and commander pliny the elder recommended the following ingredients, “ashes, head of hare and donkey teeth, mixed with extracts of mouse brain or hare.”
other common toothpaste ingredients included a powder of ox hooves’ ashes and burnt eggshells mixed with pumice.
nsokic@postmedia.com
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