People in the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa and the Indian subcontinent traditionally cleaned their teeth with chew sticks made from the Salvadora persica tree. They’re called miswak.

A Dental Surgeon with Bethel Dental Clinic, Abuja, Dr Isikwei Uche, has said that the constant use of chewing stick to clean the mouth can wear out the surface of the teeth and the gum.

Trips to the dentist today still aren’t most people’s preferred way to spend an afternoon. Dental surgery, even less so. It’s ...