Kid Zone Fun Facts!

DID YOU KNOW…?

• What’s the going rate for the Tooth Fairy these days? $1.88 per tooth, according to the 2009 annual survey conducted by Securian Dental Plans, an insurance provider.
• The average American spends a total of 38.5 days brushing their teeth over their lifetime.
• Smokers remain three times more likely than non-smokers to lose all their teeth. This figure has not changed from a decade ago. (Source: CDC)
• Like fingerprints, everyone’s tongue print is different.
• Tooth decay is the single most common chronic childhood disease – five times more common than asthma. (Source: ADA)
• More than 51 million hours of school are lost each year by children due to dental related illness. (Source: Office of the Surgeon General)
• Employed adults lose more than 164 million hours of work each year due to dental health problems or dental visits. (Source: Office of the Surgeon General)
• Over 50 percent of children aged 5-9 have at least one cavity or filling, and that proportion increases to 78 percent among 17 year olds. (Source: Office of the Surgeon General)
• 34 percent of teens and 42 percent of adults chose the toothbrush first when asked to select the invention they could not live without from among five choices – beating out the automobile, personal computer, cellular phone and microwave. (Source: Lemelson-MIT Invention Index Survey, 2003)
• People who daily drink three or more sugary sodas have up to 62 percent more dental decay, fillings and tooth loss. (Source: ADA)
• According to Guinness World Records the most valuable tooth, belonging to scientist Sir Isaac Newton, was sold in 1816 London for £730. Today that would be valued at approximately £30,000 ($49,570). The tooth was purchased by an aristocrat who then had it set in a ring.
• The average person only brushes for 45-70 seconds a day. The recommended amount of time is 2-3 minutes. (Source: Academy of General Dentistry)