Let’s all take a minute and agree that no one really wants to actually celebrate a toothache. In fact, no one is quite sure how this strange day originated. There are several theories as to how this day started and why.
Theory #1 – Feast of Saint Apollonia
February 9th is the day The Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches celebrate the feast of Saint Apollonia. She is often referred to as the patron saint of dentistry and in the 2nd Century she lost all of her teeth when she was beaten for honoring and defending her faith. In most pictures she is seen holding a golden tooth.
Theory #2 – Hershey’s Chocolate Company
On February 9, 1894 Hershey’s Chocolate Company was founded. This one is pretty obvious as to why it would be a theory for the origin of national toothache day. Yes chocolate is tasty, but it is not good for your teeth. It is not known if the company was intentionally founded on February 9th because of Saint Apollonia, but we think the coincidence is pretty cool!
Why are we writing about this topic you ask? To get everyone thinking about their dental health! Despite this weird and strange holiday it serves as a good reminder to take care of our teeth. We know that a toothache is no reason to celebrate, but honoring February 9th for us is about raising awareness of dental health and preventing toothaches.
Visiting with your dentist on a regular basis will help keep you and your child on point with oral health and stop those nasty toothaches from starting!