The evidence suggests that prehistoric people did use toothpicks, made from a variety of materials such as wood, bone, or animal bristles, to clean their teeth and remove food debris. Archaeological excavations have uncovered toothpick-like objects in various prehistoric sites around the world, dating back to the Stone Age. Neanderthals, for example, who inhabited Europe and parts of Asia during the Pleistocene period, are known to have used wooden sticks as toothpicks.