How did people maintain their teeth before toothpaste?
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Toothpaste isn’t actually necessary for basic teeth hygiene.
Dental caries are caused by exposing your teeth to sugary/starchy substances, and then the acids in those substances feed bacteria which slowly eat away at your teeth. It tends to happen patchily because starchy substances tend to clump in little gaps and crevices in your teeth.
The worst foods fall into two categories – stuff that’s strongly acidic and sugary to begin with, like soda or orange juice, or stuff that easily leaves small, stubborn clumps on your teeth, like potato and bread, where it can sit unnoticed and work over time.
You maintain your teeth by a) eating less of the above kinds of foods and b) removing food buildup in your teeth as soon as possible.
Ancient people did both of the above.
You can scrub your teeth free of mushy potato leftovers just as easily with a finger, a coarse leaf, a plain bristled brush, or any number of other things.
Modern toothpastes are more about polishing, stain removal, smell and flouride than actually cleaning your teeth. And the latter is largely irrelevant if you live in an area with flouridated public water supplies.
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