Oral hygiene was first practiced by:

 # Oral hygiene was first practiced by:

A. Chinese

B. Estruscans

C. Sumerians

D. Sushruta

The correct answer is C. Sumerians.

Sumerians practiced oral hygiene as early as 3000 B.C. using gold toothpicks. The chinese used chewstick as a tooth pick and toothbrush to clean and massage gingival tissues. 

Charaka Samhita stressed on tooth brushing- the stick for tooth brushing should be bitter, pungent or astringent. One of its end should be chewed in the form of a brush and should be used twice daily without injuring gums. Neem chewsticks are still used today The small wooden stick used by Arabs, the end of which was often chewed, the wood fibers being used as a brush - called Siwak or Miswak.

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