Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Scotsnet

Welcome to Scotsnet - discuss all aspects of life in Scotland, including relocating, schools and local areas.

Original poster

ANOTHER strange question if you were at primary school in the '70s.

37 replies

AgentProvocateur · 30/08/2015 22:06

That other thread about school milk (vom) and a biscuit prompted me to ask if anyone who was at primary school in the late '70s, got a visit from a "dental person" once a week with mouthwash? She came into our class with a huge bottle and we all got a small plastic cupful from her pump dispenser. I can remember her coming in and the taste of the mouthwash, and I have a vague recollection of us spitting it into a communal bucket... (Is that too disgusting, even for the 70s?)

DH is the same age as me, and I think in these days both our schools would have been in Strathclyde Region, but he has no recollection.

OP posts:
ItsAllGoingToBeFine · 30/08/2015 22:21

That sounds rank!

Strathclyde Region in the 80s and was never subjected to that!....

friendofsadgirl · 30/08/2015 22:24

Strathclyde Region here too and I don't recall that. It sounds disgusting Shock
I will ask my DM as she taught in the 70s.

CocktailQueen · 30/08/2015 22:25

Aberdeen in the late 70s and don't remember that...

nothruroad · 30/08/2015 22:26

Yes! We did this in the Highland region in the 80s. We called her the 'tooth lady'. The communal bucket made me feel so ill. Full of spit and foam and general yuk. We had to brush our teeth as well and then got a shot glass full of something that I thought was fluoride but may have been mouthwash. Then sometimes they gave us those disclosing tablets and we got shouted at if we had too much plaque. Ah, happy days. Kids today do not know what they are missing.

Original poster
AgentProvocateur · 30/08/2015 22:30

Thank you, nothruroad!! I think the rest of you (and my DH and friends) have just blanked it from your minds because the communal spit bucket was so disgusting. Wink

OP posts:
Behooven · 30/08/2015 22:34

We didn't have that, but did have The Tufty Club with a free toothbrush and rinse mug.

Behooven · 30/08/2015 22:37

Oh, and the nurse who came round to measure and weigh everyone. I didn't know I was fat until she came and told me. Sad Hmm

friendofsadgirl · 30/08/2015 22:38

I do remember the disclosing tablets. I liked the taste of them.
I still have a Tufty Club book somewhere... Do you think I can take it on Antiques Roadshow yet?

goldglittershitter · 30/08/2015 22:38

Oh no, don't recall that (thank God!). Maybe I've just buried the memory but if that is the case, great Grin .

nothruroad · 30/08/2015 22:45

You are welcome. I kind of wish I had blocked it out too.

RufusTheReindeer · 30/08/2015 22:48

Dont remember that, but i left scotland at 8

Do remember the tufty club...i have a picture of me somewhere and i have the badge on my school uniform

TheSpottedZebra · 30/08/2015 22:51

I have a Tufty Club hanky.
And I remember the tooth lady and disclosing tablets, but not a communal spitoon.

NotAnotherPackedLunchBox · 30/08/2015 22:51

Late 70 s on the East coast - we had a weekly visit from the flouride lady and were given a plastic shot glass of fluoride to swill for 1 minute before spitting it back into the cups at our desks. A metal bucket was passed round for us to empty all the spit and fluoride into although a lot of it dribbled on the desks. { EnvyShock}

ttlshiwwya · 31/08/2015 12:17

Late 70s on the West coast - no mouthwash lady. However every morning all the boys (only the boys) got sent to the school nurse to get their hands and face washed. Years later when I mentioned it to my mum she said it was because of X who always turned up at school completely manky and the teacher didn't want to single him out. She used the same face cloth for everyone.

PS I loved the Tufty Club

LonnyVonnyWilsonFrickett · 31/08/2015 15:18

Yep, but we called her the fluoride lady and (like *NotAnother8) we spat back into our cups before emptying them in the bucket.

Absolute voms-ville and I'm sure that's why I'm so iffy about spit to this day.

I also have a squillion fillings, so it clearly did no good whatsoever!

Original poster
AgentProvocateur · 31/08/2015 19:41

That's right - we spat it back into our cups, then transferred to bowl! Yuk. I also have a mouthful of fillings. Sad

Anyway, I'm glad some other people remember it. I was beginning to doubt myself.

OP posts:
friendofsadgirl · 31/08/2015 19:47

I think dentists drilled children's teeth for fun in the 70/80s. I have spent 10 years gradually getting mine replaced with white ones Grin

dementedpixie · 31/08/2015 19:50

We had a dentist on the school premises and they used to come and get you from your class. I remember many a time walking to the dentist furiously scraping my teeth with my nails to get plaque off (don't think my parents pushed us much to brush our teeth - had 5 children!)

WankerDeAsalWipe · 31/08/2015 20:53

We had that (Edinburgh 70's) whilst I had a fair few extractions, (Sugar sandwiches, drinking fizzy juice during the night and no brushing unless I had brownies that night) I have very few fillings - probably more owed to not attending the dentist from age 15 until age 36 than the flouride mouth wash. I therefore missed the drill happy years when dentists were paid by the amount they did and therefore drilled any slight mark.

Was told this by an older dentist when I got my 2nd ever filling age 40 :)

kua · 31/08/2015 22:28

I spent my primary/early secondary years gong back and forth from Scotland to the States. EVERY time I was back here I ended up with a filling even though I had regular care/ took good care of my teeth. The dentist in the States would always question my parents on why this had occurred.

My current dentist has informed me that I had extractions that were not required ( too many teeth Hmm) which were also done here in the UK.

Now I have DS, I'm glad to say things have changed here.

I did love the taste of those disclosing tablets though @

MintChocAddict · 01/09/2015 00:11

We had flouride tablets on a daily basis in our school and thankfully not the spit bucket (boat).
We used to get them at the same time as the warm curdled milk cartons were given out each morning.

They started off in P1 as small and orange and a bit gritty and then over the years became multi coloured and she'll coated. the neon pink ones always went first!

MintChocAddict · 01/09/2015 00:12

Ha ha spit bucket (boak) - not spit bucket (boat) Grin

MintChocAddict · 01/09/2015 00:13

she'll coated not she'll coated!! FFS

Going to bed!

MintChocAddict · 01/09/2015 00:15

Arghhhh. Effin autocorrect!!!

Shell coated

Behooven · 01/09/2015 07:43
Grin