Everyone remembers visits from the tooth fairy! August 22 is National Tooth Fairy Day, so we are celebrating with five toothy facts about the mysterious lady.
1. She's not very old
Compared to Santa Clause who dates back to ancient history (about 280 CE), the tooth fairy only dates back to the early 1900s. She was first mentioned in an article in the Chicago Daily Tribune's "Household Hints" column on September 27th, 1908. A reader suggested that "many a refractory child will allow a loose tooth to be removed if he knows about the tooth fairy. If he takes his little tooth and puts it under the pillow when he goes to bed the tooth fairy will come in the night and take it away, and in its place will leave some little gift."
2. The price of a tooth fluctuates with the stock market
Delta Dental insurance company has tracked the price of a tooth for a while now. They found out that the price of a tooth correlates with the S&P 500.
3. Parents use her to promote good hygiene
For years, parents have told their kids that a perfect and healthy tooth is much more valuable to the tooth fairy than a decayed one.
4. The Vikings had their own "tooth fairy"
In the 13th century, the Norse Eddas mentioned a "tand-fé" or "tooth fee." Parents made small payments to their child to recognize their child's gowning up. Viking warriors even wore their child's teeth as a symbol of good luck and protection in battle.
5. Nobody really knows what she looks like
Internationally, people believe children lose their teeth to mice, rats and other small animals. The baby tooth is a sacrifice to a rat in hopes that the adult teeth will grow in as strong as the rodent's. Many Americans believe the tooth fairy looks like Tinkerbell and carries a wand.
How much did you get from the tooth fairy? Share your response with us on our Facebook page!
