Toothpicks Look Cool, but Are They Bad for Your Teeth?

We’ve all seen the movies with some cool guy wearing a leather jacket and sunglasses as he casually chews on the toothpick hanging lazily from his mouth. Like many behaviors popular in the fifties, toothpicks are not as benign as they seem to be. Your teeth should be used exclusively for smiling and chewing food, and wood does not count as food unless you are a termite. Read on to learn about how frequent toothpick use can lead to an emergency trip to the dentist’s office, along with some better alternatives to consider.