Plumbing originated in the ancient civilizations of the Greeks, Chinese, Indians, Persians and Romans. It did not, however, become a widely used system during the nineteenth century. At this time, there was an increased concern about the methods for waste disposal because people threw away waste on the street or in rivers. Originally, plumbing piping was built using products such as wood, clay, lead and stone. The pipes made from lead proved to be toxic when people began to fall ill with lead poisoning.