Neanderthals possibly used toothpicks, research shows
One of the teeth in question, was a third lower molar belonging to a 30-year-old Neanderthal, and was "heavily worn, perhaps from chewing hard food," according to the report.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFAn exhibit shows the life of a neanderthal family in a cave in the new Neanderthal Museum in the northern town of Krapina February 25, 2010.(photo credit: NIKOLA SOLIC/REUTERS)
Archaeologists operating in Poland have found evidence that Neanderthals had used toothpicks at one point, shedding light on the hygiene practices of the unevolved human, according to Archaeology.org.The researchers uncovered two separate teeth at Stajnia Cave in south-central Poland, that were identified as Neanderthal via DNA testing, that were found to have no trace of "growth disorders or dental decay."One of the teeth in question, was a third lower molar belonging to a 30-year-old Neanderthal, and was "heavily worn, perhaps from chewing hard food," according to the report.Wioletta Nowaczewska of the University of Wrocław noted that there were wear marks within the teeth that pointed to the use of a "piece of twig or bone" that could have been regularly used to dislodge food from the Neanderthal's mouth.“It had to be a fairly stiff, cylindrical object, which the individual used often enough to leave a clear trace,” Nowaczewska said, according to the report.The second tooth was an upper premolar belonging to a Neanderthal in his twenties. It was less worn down than the first.
