In some places, brushing your teeth once a day might be considered more than enough, but in other places, brushing only once could be considered a disgrace!

In Japan, the saying “cleanliness is next to godliness” might be the best way to describe tooth brushing culture. People are generally expected to brush their teeth after every meal, or as many as three times a day. Brushing your teeth may sound simple enough, but every place has their own thoughts on the subject, too. Let’s take a look at tooth brushing, or hamigaki, from the Japanese perspective.

The History of Hamigaki

Believe it or not, toothbrushes as we know them today haven’t been around forever, but that doesn’t mean that no one cleaned their teeth in the past. Before the invention of modern synthetic toothbrushes, people turned to nature for the tools to polish up their pearly whites.

In ancient times, the Japanese relied on toothpicks or tassel made from branches with antibacterial qualities to clean their teeth. It’s unclear when the Japanese picked up this habit, however, in Japanese Buddhist scriptures there is a story in which Buddha throws a used toothpick to the ground, causing a large tree to sprout forth from the earth. Therefore, toothpicks must have been in use shortly after the introduction of Buddhism to Japan at the latest.

In 1223, the Zen Master Dōgen Kigen recorded that he witnessed Chinese monks cleaning their teeth using brushes made from horse-hair and attached to the end of an ox-bone handle. It may have been around this time that the Japanese were first introduced to the idea of a modern toothbrush. Later on, toothbrushes started to look like what we know today, especially after contact with the West. The following picture comes from an 1880′s pharmacy catalog:

As a side note, another factor that contributed to the maintenance of teeth in Japan was the tradition of “ohaguro,” or the blackening of teeth.

While this tradition was done primary for reasons of fashion and status, it also indirectly protected one’s teeth by forming a protective barrier around them. Usually this was done with a dark-brown concoction made of ferric acetate, made by dissolving iron filings in vinegar. When the solution was combined with vegetable tannins it would turn black and become non-water soluble [Source]. Oh, and you’d have to apply this once every day or every few days. I wonder how it tasted!

Hamigaki Culture Today

Often times a people’s values are reflected in the lessons taught to their children, and in the case of tooth brushing in Japan, this is especially apparent. One of the earliest memories many Japanese people share is learning how to brush their teeth with their parents. In fact, tooth brushing is considered a family bonding activity and is done so until a relatively late age.

For me, this was shocking news and what made Japanese hamigaki culture stand out to me, as I realized I didn’t have one memory of brushing my teeth with my parents. If you search YouTube for “hamigaki,” be careful – you could be captured for hours by all the adorable home videos of children learning to clean their little chompers. In order to save you from such a terrible fate, I’ll just show you some here:

As the ritual goes, children usually try to clean their teeth on their own first. Then, when they are all finished, the child will usually lay their head down on their mother’s (or father’s) lap where the parent finishes the job, making sure to get all the nooks and crannies.

But tooth brushing is not just an activity done between parent and child. In Japan, children are expected to brush their teeth after every meal – even at school! In fact, Japanese school children are all made to brush their teeth as a group in the classroom every day.

Of course, as you can imagine, keeping the attention of a group of 8 year-olds on a task as mundane as tooth brushing isn’t the easiest thing in the world to do, but Japan has a (cute) solution for everything it seems. Over the years, several tooth brushing songs focusing on the fun sound effects of hamigaki have been created to keep kids’ attention.

Honestly, I wish I had heard these when I was a kid:

This kid loves the tooth brushing song so much, he keeps asking his mom to do it over and over again or else he stops brushing his teeth!

In addition to songs, many tooth brushing toys have been created to help demonstrate the correct way to brush your teeth and instill good habits in children’s minds. That, or just scare them into doing it. I’m not sure which. Even candy companies have developed their own teeth cleaning toys.

Either way, the amount of effort put into teaching kids good tooth brushing habits seems to have good results. According to What Japan Thinks, around 50% of adults brush their teeth after every meal, even if that means brushing in public. To be blunt, from the perspective of someone outside of Japanese culture it can be a bit strange to see your professor brushing his or her teeth in the office if you aren’t used to it.

Brushing Your Teeth In Japan

So, you’re in Japan and you forgot to bring your toothbrush. That, or you’re going to be there for a long time and you’re going to have to adjust to everyday Japanese culture. Looks like you’re going to have to make a trip to the store. However, when you get to the toothbrush aisle you will find yourself confronted with a million products, none of which look familiar to you. Excluding running out the door and not brushing your teeth for a year, what would you do?

There are several rumors out there concerning Japanese toiletries, and toothbrushes / toothpaste are not excluded, but here’s the truth of the matter.

In general, Japanese toothbrushes, or haburashi (歯ブラシ), are made much smaller and softer than those in some other countries. Some people have problems with this, but they are made this way to make brushing less harsh on your teeth and gums, and also to make it easier to maneuver the toothbrush. If you happen to prefer more “petite” brushes, you might want to consider ordering one from Japan.

When it comes to toothpaste (also known as hamigaki), there are about a million and a half brands on the shelf, all of which are in Japanese and can be very hard to sort through for those who can’t read the language.

In addition, many people are under the belief that Japanese toothpaste doesn’t contain what could be considered essential ingredients, such as fluoride. After checking the ingredients of a few brands myself, I found that this is partially true. However, some brands do contain fluoride. If you’re in Japan and you’re looking for a brand of toothpaste that does contain fluoride, I would stick to using Aquafresh. That, or you can look for fluoride (フッ素, ふっそ) in the ingredients.

It seems funny to me that you would brush your teeth so many times a day and yet not use fluoride. Surprisingly, it also happens that some Japanese people don’t use toothpaste at all. In places where you don’t want to make a mess such as school toothpaste is also not used.

In Japan, teeth related products are made to be a much bigger deal than many other places. In America, I recall seeing some unmemorable ads here and there for toothpaste and toothbrushes, but none of those could compare to the magnitude of Japanese advertising campaigns in this field.

Recently, world renown J-pop artist Kyary Pamyu Pamyu signed on to be the selling face of Ora2 toothpaste.

She will be advertising the product in countries such as Singapore and Thailand in addition to Japan, making this her first appearance in an ad campaign outside of her home country.

With this toothpaste,  Kyary Pamyu Pamyu can take the kimo right out of your kimo-kawaii.

Personally, I find this campaign makes a statement about the role of oral health in Japanese society because I simply couldn’t imagine someone like Lady Gaga advertising Crest toothpaste. Besides, I really wouldn’t like raw meat flavored toothpaste.

The Future of Hamigaki

So what is in the future of hamigaki? About a year ago scientists in Japan created a microscopically thin film that coats the teeth and prevents tooth decay and can even make the teeth appear whiter. Although this product isn’t available yet, it will be in the next couple of years. Perhaps brushing your teeth will become unnecessary in the future? Well, maybe not, but it’s a nice thought.

What do you think about hamigaki culture in Japan? How is it compared to your own culture? Let me know in the comments!

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As an exchange student in Japan though, I realized just how few Japanese songs I was actually able to sing when I went to karaoke for the first time. From then on, I have dedicated a lot of time to discovering, listening to, and learning popular Japanese songs. So now, after a few years of experience and keeping up to date with the Japanese music scene, I come to you with a list of my top ten Japanese musicians. I like to listen to a wide variety of styles, so I tried to keep my list diverse. Enjoy!

My Top 10 J-Pop Artists

Here are my top ten artists. Don’t get mad at me if your favorite doesn’t make it (Who are we kidding, of course you’ll get mad at me)! So, put on some nice headphones, sit back, relax and get ready to listen to some good music, no matter where in the world you live.

10. YUI

YUI is one of the first J-Pop artists that I ever listened to. I have a soft spot for female singer/songwriters, and YUI satisfies that with her mix of cheery pop and acoustic ballads. I think I might have enjoyed YUI more before I started to understand Japanese, though. Her voice can be a little annoying at times, and the way she sings can make it pretty hard to understand her lyrics. But overall, YUI is a very accessible girly pop artist. Think Taylor Swift but with less country.

9. Namie Amuro (安室奈美恵)

Namie Amuro, often called the “Queen of J-Pop,” definitely deserves to be on this list even though I don’t listen to her very much. Mostly an R&B singer, her music is more similar to popular hits in the US than AKB-type musicians. Her career has spanned longer than any other female artist- starting in 1992 she continues to make music today despite controversy as a divorced single mother.

8. FUNKY MONKEY BABYS (ファンキーモンキーベイビーズ)

I first heard FMB when I was part of the brass band club at my high school in Japan. We played a lot of pop song covers, and FMB’s “Namida” was one of them. Since then, I’ve fallen in love with their loose, easy to listen to hip-hoppy/pop sound. One thing that makes them stand out is their use of celebrity’s faces on their album covers.

7. aiko

Imagine you are in a fancy club, and a jazzy woman is playing loose breezy piano and singing away. Aiko is usually what I play for friends who don’t listen to J-Pop. Going strong since 1998, most of her albums have peaked at No.1 on the charts. Her unique voice and unique love songs are easy to listen to even if you don’t catch everything she says. Aiko, like YUI, tends to run her words when singing, making comprehension hard if you’re not used to hearing it.

6. SMAP

In terms of boy bands, the  80′s-90′s band SMAP is out of style compared to the more modern and popular boy band, Arashi. But since this is my list, I chose SMAP over Arashi simply because their music is better. SMAP is still active and still getting their singles on the charts, even if they are old. Sing for me, attractive males! Sing!

5. Perfume (パフューム)

Technopop. Technopop with girls. Technopop with three insanely cute girls. Perfume is as bubblegum as it gets. Loud and dancey, Perfume is what I listen to when it is 3 AM and I have an essay due at 8AM. At first just an average singing group, Perfume became what they are today when the genius producer/composer Yasutaka Nakata became their main producer. Nakata has also been responsible for the techno group Capsule and has recently been producing and writing for the ultra-famous Kyary Pamyu Pamyu as well.

4. Mr. Children

Mr. Children (often called ミスチル or “Mischil” for short) may be an old band, but they are a legendary one. In the 90′s they created the “Mischil Phenomenon” by basically taking over the media and showing up everywhere. On the surface they might not seem too different from other pop/rock bands to non-Japanese-speaking J-Pop fans, but if you can understand Japanese lyrics, its easier to appreciate and enjoy Mr. Children for the gem that they are.

3. Angela Aki (アンジェラ・アキ)

My female singer/songwriter bias is showing again, and Angela Aki is my favorite in that genre. A Japanese-American, she was born in Japan, but attended high school in Hawaii and university in Washington DC. She’s released albums in both Japan and the US, but only really took off in Japan. She plays piano for her songs herself (like a Japanese Regina Spektor), and writes superb lyrics.

2. GReeeeN

This rock band is comprised of four members, which is one of the reasons why they have four “e”‘s in their name. The band came together when the men were in dental school, so the e’s also look like a row of teeeeth! In order to keep their music careers separate from their dentistry careers, the members have never revealed their names or faces. So, unlike many other bands or artists with pretty faces attached, you know that it’s GReeeeN’s music that is deserving of the attention they get. GReeeeN’s lyrics tend to be exciting and inspiring, and I have had my share of feels arise from listening to their music.

1. Ikimonogakari (いきものがかり）

Hands down, Ikimonogakari is my favorite Japanese band. Comprised of two male guitarists and one female singer, their songs are surprisingly girl-oriented despite most of their songs being written by Yoshiki Mizuno, one of the male guitarists. The singer, Kiyoe Yoshioka has a voice that is very strong, clear, and never whiny, even when she jumps and runs across the stage while singing at concerts. Ikimonogakari does a fantastic job on their ballads and their up-tempo songs, and have created songs that are both simple and complex at the same time. Oh, Yoshiki Mizuno, sometimes I feel like you understand my feelings better than even my close friends; your lyrics go straight to my heart~ *fangirls*

Honorable Mentions

Some of these are here because they deserve to be mentioned, some are very near and dear to me even though they didn’t make it to the top ten, some are culturally impacting, and some are just worth taking a listen to. Here are the scattered remains:

Ai Otsuka (大塚愛)

Ootsuka Ai has stopped producing music lately, but I love her strange, fun, feel-good songs.

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu (きゃりーぱみゅぱみゅ)

Kyary was very close to making my top ten list, but honestly, I like her for her aesthetics more than her music (although Yasutaka Nakata does a great job composing her sugary tunes).

Kiss-my-ft2

Kiss-my-ft (pronounced kisu mai futto or just Kiss My Foot) is the most ridiculous Johnny’s band I have ever seen. I don’t know if anyone takes their pretty-boy rollerskating display or effeminate manliness seriously, but they’ve become pretty popular lately (maybe it’s because their music videos are gum commercials?). Watch this video all the way through, you won’t be disappointed.

Goosehouse

Goosehouse is a group of singer-songwriters who have gained popularity by posting covers of popular songs on YouTube. Since then, they’ve posted originals and plan on releasing an album this summer. Watching their covers is a great way to discover new songs/artists!

Your Favorite J-Pop Artists

We’re talking about music here… not to mention an ordered Top 10 list. So, you probably have wildly different opinions compared to me. Instead of just saying “what an awful list” I’d love it you shared your top ten list as well, in the comments below. Maybe I’ll discover some new J-Pop favorites along the way! Also, other readers will surely appreciate learning about more J-Pop other than the ones I provided too.

So let’s hear it. What’s your own personal top ten (or top 5, or 3, or whatever I can squeeze from your cold, dead fingers)?

Every Sunday we gather the week’s weird and interesting Japanese news and present it to you in our Sunday News column. It might not always be hard-hitting news, but we hope that it still informs and entertains you. Enjoy!

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Sashihara Rino Wins AKB48 Election

The cardinals have convened, the electoral votes have been counted, the Illuminati have made their choice, and the results are in: AKB48 starlet Rino Sashihara has won the latest AKB48 election, news so big that it made it to the top of Google News’ “politics” section. From here, Sashihara will lead the formidable pop group into handshake events and other dangerous scenarios. Godspeed, girls! [via Katsu News]

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Japanese becomes oldest person to conquer Everest: Japanese people are world-famous for their longevity, and it turns out that Japanese elderly people are pretty badass, too. 80-year-old Yuichiro Miura set a new world record this week when he became the oldest person ever to climb Mt. Everest. [via News On Japan]

Man With Knife Tries To Rob Store, Leaves When Clerk Asks Why: You always wonder what you’d do if you ever got robbed, but I don’t think anybody ever imagines it this way: earlier this week, a robbery was foiled in Mito city when the convenience store clerked asked the would-be thief why he was robbing the store. I’ve tried to imagine myself in this scenario, but I just get stabbed every time.

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Kyary Pamyu Pamyu Announces 2nd Album “Nanda Collection”: Although I don’t really listen to a whole lot of Japanese music nowadays, pop star Kyary Pamyu Pamyu has made a fan out of me with her bizarre music videos and amazing fashion. Now, she’s announced her second album, Nanda Collection for release on June 26^th. Here’s hoping it’s not a sophomore slump! [via Katsu News]

Japan votes to adopt child abduction treaty: After decades of refusing to adopt an internationl treaty on child abductions, both Japanese houses of parliament have moved to ratify the treaty. This treaty should help people stuck in a Japanese legal loophole when it comes to divorced parents and child custody. Very happy to see Japan finally making movement on this issue.

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Osaka takes plunge with canal pool

The canal in Osaka’s famed Dotonbori district, home of the Glico running man and the birthplace of the Colonel Sanders Curse, may turn into a privately-owned outdoor pool in the future. The area has already been built up a lot from its earlier, seedier days, but the pool would be the final touch. Just remember, wait half an hour after eating KFC to jump into the pool. [via Reddit]

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Wallpapers!

Our talented illustrator Aya has provided us with some desktop backgrounds of the header image. Enjoy!

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China Refuses to Confirm Okinawa Island Belongs to Japanese

Japan and China have feuded over islands in the Sea of Japan for as long as anybody can remember, but it’s always been over minor, fringe islands. It seems as if China isn’t content with that, as it’s now beginning to eye Okinawa, an island that’s more or less been indisputably Japan’s for over a century. Next up: China claims that historically, Tokyo has always been a part of China. [via Reddit]

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Donald Keene’s Latest Japanese Adventure: Donald Keene is the oldest of the old school of Japanophiles. He was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun before you were an otaku-tinted twinkle in your father’s eye. Keene is now trying out something new and very Japanese: adult adoption. The Donald adopted a friend 20 years his junior as a practical way of dealing with getting older. Can he adopt me, too?

VIDEO: “Invader Invader”, the New PV from Kyary Pamyu Pamyu: It might not seem like news that a Japanese musician has a new single out, but when that Japanese musician is pop superstar Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, I’ll make an exception. I haven’t watched the PV (promotional video) yet, but I’m guessing that there are brightly colored outfits, cute imagery, and bizarre happenings. (I joke because I love.)

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Japan Says It Will Abide by Apologies Over Actions in World War II: One of the hot-button issues in Asian politics has long been Japan apologizing for its aggression in WWII. Lately, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has been worrying people at home and abroad for hinting that the Japanese government might take back its landmark 1995 apology for its wartime actions. Fortunately, a minister in the Abe cabinet has reassured the public that the government has no plans for such a reversal.

Yen Hits Century Mark the Old-Fashioned Way: The yen has been promising to hit the oh-so-significant ¥100=$1USD mark for months now but, yesterday, it finally did it. And, surprisinly, it wasn’t Abenomics that pushed the yen over the top—it was some anonymous currency trader doing a series of massive transactions that finally pushed the yen over the top.

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Author Murakami makes first Japan public appearance in 18 years

Haruki Murakami is a strange breed. Even though he’s far and away Japan’s most famous author, he’s not really that Japanese. He’s lived for a while outside of Japan, wrote his first novel in English, and is generally not that fond of publicity in his homeland. Now, after nearly two decades of public silence in japan, he’s making a public appearance to promote his new book, Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage. [via News On Japan]

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Bonus Wallpapers!

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