Tooth tunes

Scientists have invented a remarkable toothbrush that lets you listen to pop songs while you scrub away - by transmitting the sound waves through your teeth and jawbone to your ear.

The £7 device, called Tooth Tunes, plays for exactly two minutes - the amount of time dentists recommend should be devoted to brushing every morning and night.

It is initially being targeted at children, but could also be marketed to the so-called iPod generation of adults.

American maker Hasbro claims that Tooth Tunes will 'single-handedly change children's attitudes' to brushing and expects it to be in the shops before Christmas.

A single piece of music is stored in a microchip in the brush's handle. When a button is pushed, it plays on a minicomputer and is transported along the bristles, through the teeth and jawbone and into the ear. While the user hears 'a cross between the sound of music coming out of a stereo and the sound of humming to oneself', onlookers are aware only of a buzzing noise similar to an electric toothbrush.

Replacement chips with different songs will be available, and Hasbro is negotiating with artists including the Black Eyed Peas and Will Smith. The firm spent six years trying out its new technology in lollipops, pens, spoons and forks before deciding to launch it in toothbrushes.

Andrew Filo, one of the inventors, said: "The human jaw is a great conductor of sound. As a child I used to close my ears and wonder how I could hear myself hum."

The Department of Health says that the number of under-fives having rotten teeth removed has soared by 20 per cent in recent years, with many having all 20 milk teeth removed.