Developing wisdom teeth can be an unpleasant experience for many people. They can cause swelling and pain and may need to be removed. Sometimes they will be removed even before they erupt, due to infection or crowding. They are difficult for most people to keep them clean, and free of decay. So why are they even there?

It is believed that early man needed these extra molars because of their diet. The diet consisted mostly of nuts, roots, and meat. They needed the wisdom teeth to chew the tough foods. The jaw was also a lot larger than our jaw today, making enough room for the extra molars. It is also thought that if early man lost a tooth, the wisdom teeth would move the other teeth forward to close the space for a better chance of chewing and biting. Wisdom teeth develop in stages.

They don’t even begin to form until about age 10. They usually begin to erupt between the ages of 17 and 25. They are called “wisdom” teeth because it’s assumed that we have gained more wisdom by this age. Some people never develop some or all wisdom teeth, and rarely some develop more than 4. Wisdom teeth are considered to be completely useless to modern man. They can cause all sorts of problems. They can become impacted and infected. They can cause crowding and make the other teeth crooked. And there are those lucky ones who do not have problems with them at all.

Dentists calculate that about 85 percent of all people will have to have their wisdom teeth removed. If you need to have them removed, it is best to get this done early. Dentists recommend that you have this done before the age of 35 if possible. This type of oral surgery gets more difficult after that age.

TLC Dentistry – Dentist in Salinas