Burning agony Study reveals poor took comfort But tobacco only added to their from smoking during hell of famine misery with rotting gums and teeth
Shared post Tooth decay showing evidence of pipe smoking around the 1850s century population on the same diet didn’t have the same evidence of poor oral health. He said: “Our study shows it is not only diet that affects your oral health, but many other factors – and we argue smoking was a major contributing factor in the Kilkenny population sample. “They are also unlikely to have cleaned their teeth efficiently – as evidenced by a lot of tartar
build-up – so that is obviously also another contributing factor.”
The high frequency of clay pipe facets or marks from clenching a pipe between the teeth in many of the skeletons was evidence of smoking.
The study reveals literature from the 19th century recounted that in Ireland “all of the boys, and many of the girls, aged around 14 years were pipe smokers”.
The clay pipe facets or notches which only show up in long-time, habitual Families plead for food supplies A boy and girl looking for potatoes smokers were present among 61% of adult males and 29% of adult females but this is a minimum estimate of the smokers as the pipe marks wouldn’t be seen in newer smokers.
The study just published in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology was co-authored by Dr Geber and Eileen Murphy on work carried out in Queen’s University Belfast and the University of Otago.
The authors added: “In the face of poverty and destitution, the horror of starvation and the mass death that occurred during the Great Famine, we might imagine smoking would have been one of the comforts the poor could have enjoyed.”
Dr Geber, lecturer at the University of Otago, hopes their discoveries will give an insight into the link between smoking and tooth decay.
The report said: “The study adds to the growing body of evidence that demonstrates smoking is not only bad for your health; it is also bad for your teeth.”
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