I don’t know how many times I’ve heard this. The story goes that people used to brush their teeth with urine, supposedly due to the high ammonia content. The story goes so far as to include people actually selling their urine for the sole purpose of dental care. This point in particular makes me question the practice. I couldn’t find anything in the archives and only shoddy stuff on the 'net. What’s the Dope on this subject. Did people ever really brush their teeth with urine?
It’s all over the place as a factoid, usually stating that the Romans used urine as a toothpaste and a mouthwash. A slightly more detailed cite is the following:
Yeah, I remember reading that urine therapy column, Arnold. I’ll make sure to drink beer all night before I try that one, instead of early in the morning.
Well, there’s a poem by Catullus (c. 84-54 BC) in which he makes fun of a Spaniard who allegedly brushes his teeth with urine. Catullus evidently finds this as weird and gross as we would, so I assume the practice wasn’t common among Romans, at least not at that time.
I’ll see if I can find a translation and post a link to it; it’s a kick-ass poem.