I tried using the tooth water/paste I made and posted about previously. I made my husband record a video of me doing it so we could record my initial responses. The video can be found on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FhU4Uxcqm0E It has been about a half hour since I tried it, and my breath still feels fresh, and my teeth feel very clean. I’m encouraged to keep working on this project, and trying additional dentifrices.
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Tooth Water
Last night, I experimented with the “tooth water” listed in the Boke of Nurture by John Russell. It has a very interesting smell and texture. The excerpt from the manual is below: I will aduertise you by foure rules of importance how to keepe your teeth white and vncorruyt (mc), and also to haue a sweete breath. First, wash well your mouth when you haue eaten your meat : secondly, sleepe with your mouth somewhat open. Thirdly, spit out in the morning that which is gathered together that night in the throate : then take a linnen cloth, and rub your teeth well within and without, to take away the fumositie of…
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Clay in Tooth Powders/Pastes/Washes
While working on my toothpaste project, I found that clay was used in tooth washes. It seemed odd to me that clay would have been used, but doing some research I found that the particular clay mentioned, Armenian Bole, is a clay that has been used throughout period for medicinal purposes. It is mentioned in at least two different tooth cleaning recipes. Because it had been my intention to recreate these tooth cleaning items and allow people to try them, I needed to research the components carefully to ensure that they were not harmful. The other ingredients were found to be harmless, as they included vinegar, honey, tarragon, alum and…
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Daily Living – Sanitation: Life Before Toilet Paper
There are some things in our society that are so basic, so integral to our lives that we cannot imagine going without. We do not even think about them until we run out. Toilet paper is one of these items. Since 1857, when toilet paper first became commercially available, we have used it to cleanse after using the bathroom. This begs the question; what did people use to clean themselves before toilet paper? This work will provide an overview of what people used to cleanse themselves after defecating in Rome, China, Japan, India, the Islamic states and various areas of Europe between 400 C.E. and 1600 C.E. We…
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Toilet Paper Project – Supplemental – 15th Century Test Results
The diet change is having the desired effect. I’m noticing more substantial changes in my bowel movements. I am still very gassy, and am having difficulty with my bowel movements. The consistency has changed, becoming firmer, which was not what I expected. With the fiber heavy diet, consisting primarily of grains and bread, I suspected that the opposite would occur. This actually a pleasant surprise to me, as I was not looking forward to using some of the items with a looser stool. I tested un-spun wool. I was not impressed. It was too soft, and I didn’t feel clean after using it. I followed up with toilet paper, and…
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The Toilet Paper Project – Week 4
I took some time off from the toilet paper project because real life exploded. But, things are back on track now. I started eating a rough approximation of a 15th century English vassal’s diet on Tuesday. The basic information I was able to glean showed me that a vassal’s diet was similar to that of a peasant, but included a wider variety of vegetables and more meat. I did not swap out water for ale, for mundane reasons. I did not think my bosses would appreciate me drinking ale while at work. I’m sure my proportions are off, but I have been unable to ascertain exact amounts of each meal,…
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The Toilet Paper Project – Week 3
All food experimentation regarding food is on hold until I recover from a nasty case of asthmatic bronchitis. I don’t want to alter my diet too much while my body is in a weakened state. Besides, Prednisone is making me cranky, and giving up processed food right now will probably push me over the edge and make me unbearable to live with. So, in lieu of eating a medieval diet, I elected to see if I could find any more primary sources about what people used to wipe after defecating. This was one of the comments on my paper, and definitely something worthwhile to address. I actually found the primary…
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The Toilet Paper Project – Week 2
A thought occurred to me. A modern diet is different than a medieval one. Therefore, bowel movements would be different. This would impact the use of the toilet paper alternatives, and provide me with a less accurate means to analyze them. So, I am electing to eat a medieval diet from each region and time period prior to using their appropriate means of cleansing after defecating. And while it may seem excessive, I am of the opinion that if I am going to do this, I am going to go all the way. And therefore, it is necessary for me to revise my 8 week time period to include time…
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The Toilet Paper Project – Week 1
On March 1, 2016, the EK Gazette posted a paper I wrote about the history of toilet paper. (https://eastkingdomgazette.org/2016/03/01/arts-sciences-research-paper-7-life-before-toilet-paper/) It was the work of many months. And even though I am pleased with the paper, I still have much to do. One of the suggestions I received was for me to try each of the items and to review them. I had received this suggestion before, and after much consideration, I’ve decided that it is the natural progression for this project. I have also elected to expand my research to include what the toilet facilities were like. I’ve briefly discussed Roman toilets, and so this is where I am going…