ANCIENT INDIAN ORAL HYGIENE PRACTICES AND THEIR RELEVANCE IN MODERN DENTISTRY

Abstract

Oral hygiene was one of the foundations of Indian health philosophy since ancient times before dental treatment was a recognized scientific discipline. In Indian traditional medicine, the oral cavity (Mukha) was a primary interface to all other bodily system organs (nutrition, speech, respiration, immunity, and systemic health). The old Indian schools, unlike the modern systems of fragmented and compartmentalized medicine, represented a holistic understanding in which they viewed oral health and the body, as well as mind, as being integrated and holistic health. Indian traditional medicine developed over centuries of observation and daily use; Indian medical knowledge was developed and extended by a long tradition and the practice of the traditional medicine. Health was understood as an ongoing fluctuation balancing and disease was understood as the disturbance in this balance. Hence, oral diseases were perceived to be not just localized conditions of teeth and gingiva but symptoms of underlying physiological and functional imbalances. The current conceptualisation of oral health and its relationship to systemic conditions including cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus, and inflammatory diseases strongly supports this perspective. [1-3]. Dentistry as it stands now, backed by evidence-based science, recent advancements in technology and medical advances have achieved enormous success diagnosing and treating oral disease. Nevertheless, despite these advances tooth diseases are still one of the most common chronic problems in the world. The trend is one of disease prevention, lifestyle changes and providing patient-oriented care. Curiously, these imperatives parallel some ancient Indian approaches to oral hygiene, which centered on a daily self-care routine as opposed to episodic care. Herbal chewing sticks, tongue scraping, oil pulling, gum massage, and use of medicinal materials, such as turmeric and clove, were part of daily practices to maintain hygiene (Dinacharya). This mix of mechanical cleanliness, herbal treatment and behavioral discipline facilitated maintenance of oral health. At the same time, Ayurveda systematized these practices by interconnecting oral health with the TriDosha system of balance, and included oral diseases under Mukha Roga. [4-6] The present chapter evaluates the ancient Indian oral hygiene practices, their philosophical and biological foundations, and their role in the development of modern oral hygiene as well as present day dental practice. A more complete, preventive, and sustainable system of oral health based on a harmonizing of accepted traditional knowledge and modern science of dentistry.