I finally finished the portion of my research paper on Ancient India. I’ve decided to post it here since I am still a long way off from having the entire paper done and I want to share what I’ve found with everyone. There is a wealth of information on history of Ayurvedic and I look forward to doing a deeper dive into other areas of health and wellness once this paper is done.
Toothbrushes, called datana, were in common use in Ancient India. However, they are not the toothbrushes we think of today. Instead of being constructed with a handle bored with holes for bristles, they were fashioned from twigs, primarily harvested from the banyan tree. A twig, approximately 8″ in length, would be crushed and chewed until one end became soft, like the bristles of a paintbrush. These sticks were split up from the chewed end and divided into two separate parts. Half of the stick is subsequently bent into a v-shape and used as a tongue scraper.
Keeping their teeth clean was also vitally important as part of their daily religious life. There is an entire chapter in the Sacred Works of Vishnu that is dedicated to the subject of oral hygiene. A translation of the text, Sacred Books of the East: The institutes of Vishnu edited by F. Max Müller in 1880 lists the 17 rules for teeth cleaning.
- A householder must not use Paläsa-wood for cleaning his teeth.
- Nor (must he use the twigs of) the Sleshmāntaka (or Selu) plant, nor of the soap plant, nor of the Vibhitaka (or Kalidruma) tree, nor of the Dhava plant, nor of the Dhāmani tree (for that purpose).
- Nor (the twigs of) the Bandhüka (or Bandhu givaka) plant, nor of the Nirgundi shrub, nor of the Sigru, Tilva, and Tinduka trees. Nor (the twigs of) the Kovidára (Yugapat traka), Sami, Pilu (Gudaphala), Pippala (holy fig tree), Inguda, or Guggula trees;
- Nor (the twigs of) the Pâribhādraka (Sakra pādapa), or tamarind, or Mokaka, or Semul trees, nor those of the hemp plant;
- Nor sweet plants (such as liquorice sticks);
- Nor sour plants (such as Amlikas);
- Nor twigs that have withered on the stem;
- Nor perforated (or otherwise faulty) wood;
- Nor stinking wood;
- Nor smooth wood;
- He must not (use the sticks) facing the south Or West.
- He must use them facing the north or east;
- He may use (the twigs of) the banyan or Asana trees, or of the Arka plant, or of the Kha dira, or Karañga, or Badara (jujube), or Sal, or Nimb trees, or of the Arimeda shrub, or of the Apá mārga or Malati plants, or of the Kakubha or Bël trees;
- Or of the Kashāya tree, or of the Tikta or Kafuka plants.
- Before sunrise let him silently clean his teeth with a stick, which must be as thick as the top of the little finger, provided with one end that may be chewed (or ‘with a brush’), and twelve Angulas long.
- Having washed and used the stick for cleaning the teeth, he must take care to leave it in a clean place; he must never make use of it on the day of new moon (or on the day of full moon).
For the purposes of this work, I have elected to dive deeper into the first three plants referenced to see if I could find them used in a modern setting, particularly in oral care. These are the banyan tree, asana tree, and akra plant.
The banyan tree, Ficus benghalensis, is a tree indigenous to India. It is believed to freshen the breath and help prevent gum bleeding. A study performed in 2014 published in the Internal Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences entitled “Phytochemical Composition and Inhibition of Oral Pathogens by Ficus Benghalensis (Linn.) Root Extracts” concluded that the root extracts from this plant “suggest the excellent medicinal bioactivity of Ficus benghalensis and explain the popularity of this plant in the folk medicine as a remedy for oral disorders, thus supporting its folklore application as preventive remedy against oral microbial diseases.”
In a study performed in 2004, asana, Pterocarpus marsupium, has been shown to be an effective treatment for type 2 diabetes. A second study, not only confirmed its effectiveness as a treatment for type 2 diabetes, but also showed that the Acetone and IPA extracts from Pterocapus marsupium had anti-inflammatory effects while the ethanolic extract showed analgesic properties, both of which were dose-dependent.
The arka plant, Calotropis gigantea, also known as the crown flower or giant milkweed, is used in Ayurvedic medicine for various purposes. For oral care, the plant is burnt to ash and massaged onto the teeth and gums to prevent cavities. An article published in 2004 noted that these plants were currently used in the Dharwad district in India and are part of the Aruyvedic medical tradition. They conjecture that the antibacterial properties found in these plants could be a reason for its effectiveness in oral hygiene. IT ends by stating “As much of the oral diseases are due to bacterial infections, such pharmaco-chemical studies of other reported plans may lead to identifying better drugs of high potential and very specific to the treatment of oral ailments.” I have been unable as of yet to find anything to support their claims that this particular genus of plant contains antibacterial properties and it warrants further study.
In addition to datana, tooth powders, toothpicks, and rinses were also popular in Ancient India. Burnt almond shells or wood charcoal were crushed into a powder and mixed with sindahva (rock salt) and applied using the datana or with the finger. The ratio was 8 part parts shells/charcoal to 1 part rock salt.
Ancient Indian physician, Sushruta, in his work Sushruta Samhita, recommends daily tooth cleaning using a mixture containing “honey, powdered Tri-katu, Tri-varga, Tejovati, Saindhava and oil.”
Tri-katu is an Ayurvedic herb blend composed of black pepper, ginger, and long pepper. Tri-varga is the three aims of life, according to Ayurveda. Tejovati consists of dried stem bark of Zanthoxylum armatum DC, commonly referred to as the tooth ache tree. Tejovati has been studied extensively, and has been found to have antibacterial, antifungal, and antimicrobial properties. A study performed in 2018 states “Herbal formulations prepared from various parts of the plant are reported to be anthelminthic and hypoglycaemic and are used in treatment of cholera, tonic for fever, remedy for skin diseases, diseases of the mouth and teeth and others”.
In addition to being the three aims of life, Tri-katu is also referenced in the Sushruta Samhita as the “tri-phala, tri-katu, and tri-mada”. Tri-phala, which is Sanskirt for “three-fruits” is made from fruits of the plant species Emblica officinalis (Amalaki), Terminalia bellerica (Bibhitaki), and Terminalia chebula (Haritaki) . Tri-mada, Sanskrit for “three-hypnotics”, is comprised of “three inebriant herbs “Chitraka” (Plumbago zeylanica Linn. Family- Plumabaginaceae), “Musta” (Cyperus rotundus Linn. Family- Cyperaceae) and “Vidanga” (Embelia ribes Burm. F. Family- Myrsinaceae)”
Works Cited in Order of Appearance:
- Choksey, K. M., Dentistry in ancient India, 1953, p 34
- Müller, F. Max Sacred Books of the East: The institutes of Vishnu 1880
- Diwan, Dr. Priti & Gadhikar, Yashashree. (2014). Phytochemical composition and inhibition of oral pathogens by ficus benghalensis (LINN.) Root extracts. International Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. 6. 111-114.
- Hariharan, R.S., Venkataraman, S., Sunitha, P. .“Association between green tea consumption and tooth loss: cross-sectional results from the Ohsaki Cohort 2006 Study.” 2004
- Pant DR, Pant ND, Saru DB, Yadav UN, Khanal DP. Phytochemical screening and study of antioxidant, antimicrobial, antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory and analgesic activities of extracts from stem wood of Pterocarpus marsupium Roxburgh. J Intercult Ethnopharmacol. 2017 Apr 12;6(2):170-176. doi: 10.5455/jice.20170403094055. PMID: 28512598; PMCID: PMC5429076.
- Hebbar, S.S., Harsha, V.H., Shripathi, V., Hegde, G.R. “Ethnomedicine of Dharwad district in Karnataka, India – Plants used in oral health care” Journal of Ethno-Pharmacology, 2004, 261-266 Kaviraj, Calcutta, 1865, p. 481 Research J. Pharm. and Tech 2018; 11(5):2131-2138
- Peterson, Christine Tara et al. “Therapeutic Uses of Triphala in Ayurvedic Medicine.” Journal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.) vol. 23,8 (2017): 607-614