Whats the deal with Wisdom Teeth?
“Do I need them?”
“Why do they get taken out?”
These are some pretty typical, and important questions. We get asked this a LOT, and I can definitely understand why some patients have concerns about them.
Wisdom teeth are your 3rd Molars… as in the 3rd set of permanent molars in your mouth… they are the ones that are furthest back. Typically they don’t show up in the mouth until the 20s, but they start forming in the jaws much earlier.
The fact that they appear later in life supposedly gives rise to their nickname “Wisdom Teeth”. That’s it, nothing else… they don’t make you any smarter. Sorry.
“So do I need my wisdom teeth?”
In the vast majority of cases the answer is no. In fact, the majority of the time they don’t even come in the whole way. The function of your molars is to help you chew your food… and if the teeth aren’t in the whole way then they aren’t doing you any good.
Many people have crowded teeth and need braces…many times there isn’t enough room for the first 28 teeth in your mouth, let alone the last 4! Which leads to the next question:
“Will wisdom teeth make my teeth crooked?” … click for part 2.
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