What Keratin Does to Enamel

In this laugh-inducing, hair-raising, and educational episode of Wow in the World, Mindy, Guy Raz, and the WOW crew learn about a new way to help strengthen teeth!

Dennis reveals his brand-new haircut - a perfectly round, helmet-shaped hairstyle hardened with hair gel. While the crew struggles to compliment the new ‘do, the conversation quickly spirals into unexpected territory when Thomas Fingerling and Gramma G-Force insist that Dennis made a terrible mistake by throwing away his hair clippings… According to them, everyone knows hair clippings should be placed under your pillow for the mysterious “Hairy Fairy,” who sneaks in through the keyhole to collect them. If the hair is strong, you might get a prize - maybe even a yacht. If it’s weak? Expect a boiled egg.

But amid the bonkerballs chatter, Mindy realizes something: the Hairy Fairy’s strange obsession with hair might actually connect to real science. She shares an incredible new study from scientists at King’s College London showing that keratin - the protein that makes up our hair and nails - could someday help repair damaged tooth enamel. Since enamel is the hardest material in the human body, but can’t grow back once it wears away, researchers have been searching for ways to rebuild or strengthen it. Their discovery? When keratin interacts with minerals in saliva, it can help form a protective crystal coating on teeth! This coating could potentially strengthen enamel and even outperform the plastic resin materials dentists currently use - making teeth far more resistant to cavities. In the future, keratin from hair could be added to toothpaste, mouthwash, or dental treatments to protect smiles everywhere!

With rollerblades, hair helmets, imaginary creatures, and cutting-edge dental research all colliding in one hilarious adventure, this episode proves that even a haircut can lead to jaw-dropping science.

📺 You can watch the WOW of this episode right now on our YouTube channel, WowTube! Find your favorite Tinkercast podcast episodes, experiments with Mindy, original music with Dennis and so much more at youtube.com/@tinkercast.

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