Sticks (thin part of branch) of Arka(Calotropis gigantia) , Nyagrodh (Ficus bengalensis), Khadir (Acacia catechu), Karanj (Pongamia pinnata) ,Arjun (Terminalia arjuna) ,etc or sticks of Kashay (astringent), Katu (Spicy), Tikta (bitter) rasa (taste) should be used to brush teeth.
Datuan (Herbal stick i.e. toothbrush) should be 12 fingers long, with width as that of tip of little finger. Teeth should be brushed without injuring the gums.
To cleanse teeth and oral cavity, dantadhavan is indicated at morning and evening. Aacharya sushrut mentions, Khadir and babool for kashay ras, Nimb for tikta and karanj for katu ras are best to use as datuan.(toothbrush)
These trees contain active ingredients, few alkalies and oil that acts as germicide, disinfectant, wound healer, strengthens teeth and stops gum bleeding.
Nimb has margosine as active chemical component and sulphur in its seed oil that acts as wormicide.
Babool has tannin, araebic acid, calcium and magnesium.
Karanj has karingine as active ingredient which is potent wormicide.
After Dantdhavan one should proceed for jivha nirlekhan. (tongue scrapping) Datuan was often sliced from the middle to form tongue scrapper.
Of late, Copper, iron and plastic tongue scrappers are available in the market.
