If you’re talking to a prospect date nothing turns you off more than a mean bad breath. That’s why print TV ads are making a killing from selling mouth wash and toothpaste that get rid of mouth bacteria. Whether bacteria in the mouth get killed or not, is beside the point. We all want to smell good when we kiss and we all feel a burning sensation in the mouth with Listerine.

Listerine was a product of long research. It was concocted first by Joseph Lawrence and George Wheat Lambert in 1879. Listerine was firs tested by dentists in 1895, thus it became the first ever mouthwash in the United States in 1914. In the past you could purchase Listerine in a glass bottle placed inside a cardboard box. This product packaging went on for more the 80 years and was later changed only in 1992.

Listerine Burn Why Does Listerine Burn

Listerine was named after Joseph Lister, widely considered as the father of modern antiseptic. Joseph Lister is attributed to have first performed the first antiseptic surgery in 1865.

Cool mint Listerine was added to the product line 1in 1992. Two years later two other brands, Listerine Antiseptic Formula and Cool Mint, were sold in plastic bottles. Listerine has fresh burst and citrus scent. A cinnamon scent was introduced in 2004 but it didn’t catch on.

Today there are seven scents on the market, and Listerine has recently come up with a whitening formula. Listerine is made by Pfizer.

What causes the burning feeling in your mouth

Listerine has thymol, methyl salicilate, eucalyptol, and menthol as ingredients. These are all isomers.  Listerine has around 26% ethanol weight per volume, in which case it actually cannot kill mouth bacteria. Listerine merely dissolves these ingredients into your gums, teeth, and tongue. When these active ingredients come in contact with your mouth and gum tissues (propelled by brushing), a burning sensation results.

Listerine Why Does Listerine Burn

As an antiseptic Listerine cleans the surface of the oral cavity while leaving an antiseptic sensation. It can neither put a stop to bad breath nor halitosis, because when you gurgle you spit out the active ingredients along with your saliva.

Can Listerine cause cancerous?

Since Listerine is the preferred mouth wash of the world, rumors leaked out that its active ingredient caused cancer. Listerine’s ingredients act as solvent (a measly 26.9% alcohol per weight volume), so it’s far from causing oral cancer. To quell this rumor, Listerine got Rossie O’Donnel to promote the product on her talk show. She would kiss a guest in the name of the product and Listerine got its image back.

Listerine has other products with the same name: toothpaste and a mint-flavor strip that serves as a mouthwash. In 2005 Listerine came out with a breath freshener spray called PocketMist.

Many consider Listerine an advertising wonder: back in its heyday it won customers over with effective TV commercials showing young women who repulsed prospective boyfriends because of their bad breath. Back in the 50s, bad breath was not considered a major teen dating issue in the USA.

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