Ask Mike: The story of wisdom teeth
Hey Guys,
I’ve had more than my share of cavities and was forced to wear both braces and neck-gear for an inhumane period of time. Still, I did manage to dodge one oral health bullet — the exorcism of the wisdom teeth. The other day, I overheard a woman talking about how her son needs to have his teeth removed and didn’t know why they called them wisdom teeth. So — to the random lady on the BART train — this one’s for you…
I was surprised to see a lot of websites dedicated to answering this exact question. Clearly, I’m not the first to ponder the peculiar naming conventions of teeth. The official website for Brent L. Florine, D.D.S. explains that wisdom teeth are also known as third molars. “Third molars usually erupt in the late teen years, which coincides with passage into adulthood and is referred to by some as the age of wisdom.” Hence, we have wisdom teeth.
Makes sense, but that begs the question: Why do we have wisdom teeth at all, when so many people just have them removed? In other words, do they serve a purpose? The folks at WiseGeek.com write that wisdom teeth may be an evolutionary leftover from a time when tooth loss was much more common due to rot and trauma. Wisdom teeth would “fill in the holes” that were left by missing teeth, “making for a more complete bite.” Another theory, perhaps not mutually exclusive, is that wisdom teeth were from a period when the human jaw was larger. Over time, the jaw shrunk, but the teeth stuck around.
There are differing opinions on whether or not wisdom teeth should automatically be removed, or if it is “wiser” to wait until the patient has problems. That’s something to discuss with your dentist. A 1989 article from the New York Times reported that “80 to 90 percent of Americans have at least one impacted ‘third molar.’” More often than not, the human jaw just ain’t big enough.
So, that’s the story of wisdom teeth – they got their name because they symbolize the onset of intelligence. Ironically, they often end up getting pulled out. Maybe that’s why humanity seems to be getting dumber by the day…
Thanks for reading,
P.S. – Thanks for all the truly horrible jokes. I can’t wait to annoy all my friends.
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Yea my wisdom teeth came in and made my front tooth over lap onto the other .
good to know- i’m getting mine pulled the minute they start to come in, because my jaw, as it so happens, is too small for even my 12 year molars. i’m going with the ‘jaw shrunk’ theory- i’m proof of that!
hi how are you doing my name is kimberly…
I read an article several years ago about a dentist who traveled around the world studing the teeth and diets of many peoples. He concluded that the modern diet being highly “fortified” with processed flour, sugar, etc. caused incomplete,or under developement of the jaw causing crowding as the wisdom teeth came in. He wrote a very comprehensive book on his findings I think mabey 50+ years ago.
I’m wondering what other ancient cultures (Egypt or Greece/Rome) did about wisdom teeth, did they have any form of dentistry or at least removing a tooth?
MIne are still coming in however, I am completely missing one on my bottom Jaw. Hopefully I don’t have to have them taken out.
Speaking of wisdom teeth, I need to have mine removed in the near future. I have 1 fully erupted tooth and 3 partially impacted/partially erupted teeth. The best time to have the wisdom teeth extracted is during the teenage years or early 20′s because it is easier to recover with minimal complications when you are younger. I should have been more diligent and gotten them taken out a year or 2 ago because I am close to 24 and they are getting on my nerves.
LOL You have to have some demonically possessed wisdom teeth! Most of us simply have them extracted or excised, but to have them exorcised–dang, I’d rather just get them taken out again.
Wisdom teeth tend to rearrange your bite poorly, are lower-quality teeth (this is not discrimination against the final molars, I swear) and are harder to clean. These are all “grounds for removal”, as a friend of mine often contests. I agree!
Excellent story. Well narrated and very informative.
I had 3 wisdom teeth removed. You may ask “what about the fourth?” and the odd answer is: there was no fourth! Only 3 showed on x-ray, even many years later it still hasn’t shown up. Weird.
I’m one of the lucky ones (I think), I have no wisdom teeth. They just aren’t there anywhere. Never had them and have freaked out a few dentists along the way. No one in my family (I know of) has ever had more than 2.
I always appreciate the subtle humor, and of course, I always enjoy the read. Thanks again Mike!
Im going with the big jaw to the shrunken jaw theory
sounds more realistic to me
i wonder how we’ll look with a bigger jaw?
this is a stupid article. wisdom teeth are our version of shark teeth. when a shark loses a tooth, one from a back row makes its way to the front. people have not always had good dental hygiene and even these days dentistry is mostly a thing of first world countries and good old american vanity. so why do we have wisdom teeth? after all our permanent teeth come in, if we lose one, we’re sunk. wisdom teeth help us out, 4 extra teeth to help replace those hypothetical missing ones.
now my question is : does it hurt ? when you extract them
Great article!
Actually, if you look at history, people having been losing their teeth until quite recently. Ever hear the stories of George Washington’s wooden teeth? It was not uncommon at that time for a person to have lost a few teeth by adulthood in those days.
If growing wisdom teeth is an evolutionary trait, they have been a beneficial one up until only a couple centuries ago.
I thought wisdom teeth was a long time ago to help kill and chew raw meat. I know of a small village in italy where no one has wisdom teeth. I have mine and they are not causing me any problems
I guess I am one of the first humans in this newly evolved species as having been born without any wisdom teeth. And I’m 27.
Ironic…i just got my wisdom teeth removed 4 days ago…and one of them was impacted and jawbone had grown over it…they sedated me to remove then, but the pain in my jaw isn’t a very pleasant experience, but still, it’s not as bad as people told me it would be…
mine still have not appeared and I am almost 30! I guess I am not very wise…or in the old days I would have remained toothless….
Cool this is the first time i read ur blog Mike.
It’s always good to know. I’ve got braces now like u said, we dodged a bullet i didnt have any molars there are now just coming in.
actually i learnt this when i was in an advanced grade class of 11 Biology. We had specialists come every friday from many departments from Colleges and Universities. Why not sure but it was fun. But one day we had a mouth and tooth specialists come around and we learnt so many interesting things ^^.. and this is what we learnt from Wisdome Teeth that day.
If you are able to flosse between your wisdome teeth without any difficulty or problems, they see it as no threat to remove them, or just don’t see a point to remove them. But if you can’t floss between them, they suggest to get them removed.
now i don’t exactly remember why he said this, but he’s real old (lol not to be mean here) and he still has his wisdome teeth, and with no problems.
i heard that like you said, people’s teeth used to fall out and be crooked, so they had room for them in their mouth, while nowadays people take care of their teeth, and also when the teeth are crooked, they get braces, so it leaves no room for wisdom teeth.
are there people here who still have them?
i’m 24 didn’t get them yet, hope i won’t!
i just turned 17 two days ago and have all my wisdom teeth still. i guess if you brush that far back you can keep them your entire life. nice theory for why our society is terribly ignorant lol.
all have erupted of course
I still have my wisdom teeth and I’m in my 30s. I can tell you that my dentist has a lot of trouble cleaning the wisdom teeth and one time when I had a cavity in one of them, it was extremely hard for him to fix it. The biggest reason why they are removed is because they are hard to work with. Most dental tools can’t reach them properly.
My dentist told me that my mouth is actually big enough to house all my teeth! I have all 4 wisdom teeth that came when I was only in HS about 10yrs ago, and they have never bothered me one bit. Lucky me huh, guess I don’t fall in your category of “dumb”…
I have all four and room for them. Strange.
Like flipper, I do not have any wisdom teeth. Period. I had some x-rays done before I got my braces on, and nothing was there! The whole situation does make for some good jokes, though. Everyone else in my family has had them, though. I thought I was sure to, considering my teeth have always been a mess. I’m not complaining, though!
I hope it’s not genetic. My entire family has had problems with their wisdom teeth. D:
I have 2 wisdom teeth coming in very gradually just now, but I’m actually genetically missing all of my 5s (I even still have one of my baby teeth because there is no tooth underneath it to push it out!) so I quite like the idea of the wisdom teeth filling in gaps!!!
Not sure if any of my siblings (sister and pair of twin brothers) had their wisdom teeth pulled, at least not as teenagers. I know that I never have. I had my first and only adult tooth pulled, a regular molar, when I split it 4-ways on a piece of bone in a BK Triple Stacker 2 years ago at age 55.
One of my little brothers who had a mouth that was small in size (but big in sound volume) had a front tooth that came in behind another. 4 of his teeth were pulled (cuspids or bicuspids?) and braces brought the rear front tooth into its proper place.
hey, my sister just got her wisdom teeth pulled out yesterday!!!
i had my wisdom teeth since i was 14,never had a problem.
Im 26 and still have them all. But i think one will have to go. Its grew in cooked but doesnt realy give me any problems. I kinda like my wisdom teeth. Before they grew in i had a gap between my two front teeth. My wisdom teeth pushed that together. My friend whos the same age never got any.
i got mine takin out when i was 15. didnt hurt :] i had 6
I’m evolved. I actually don’t have wisdom teeth and am never getting them. Does this make me less wise?
im 13 and i already have my wisdom teeth halfway grown. my wisdom teeth pushed the rest of my front teeth forward, so now i have to get 4 teeth removed, then get braces
Both I and my sister had to have those removed. They didn’t take hers out until she was like 21 so it was really painful. They took mine out last Christmas when I was sixteen and I had a terrible time. It must be genetic whether you have them or not because some people don’t have them and they are lucky. Mine were not coming in straight even though all of my other teeth came in straight so they HAD to take them out. I also have missing laterals and I have to get cosmetic implants. I wonder if this is genetic.
I have to get all four of my wisdom teeth removed in order to get braces… but I’m pregnant! Don’t know if I am going to be able to put to sleep. Hope it’s not too painful!
Thanks so much for the information I have wondered that myself when I was a bit younger and worried as so many of my friends and relatives had theirs removed.
My wisdom teeth never erupted, as it turns out I never grew any on the bottom and the two top ones are still in there, the dentist told me I’d have problems with one of them. But here I am a golden girl and they are still in there.
Good luck with your teeth, sounds like you went through a lot, I hope they repay you well.
Good points.
Mine came in when I was 21… if I could go back before that I would have had them removed before they ever caused a problem. #1 I had straight teeth to begin with, #2 also a jaw problem (from a car accident). Mine suddenly grew incorrectly (pushing forward) and the pain was unbearable. They were only pushing for a short time, but it was enough to ruin all of my once straight teeth. On the other hand… freeing up all that space back there has really helped with my jaw problems. Tip for all of you, have them removed before they give you grief.
As is usual in evolution, men and women mate based on appearance. The answer to the wisdom tooth problem is that women chose men and men chose women with smaller lower jaws. Over time our teeth would not fit in the available space without altering our physical appearance and our chances of mating. Modern man has solved the problem through dentistry.
So since I am genetically void of any wisdom teeth and also my lower set of 18 year old molars, does that mean that I am high on the evolutionary scale?? LOL!!!
hehe Interesting (and funny) read. The dentists have been saying for over 10 years that my wisdom teeth are coming in and that I need to get them taken out. X-rays showed almost 2 years ago that for once the dentists weren’t lying. But they’re taking their precious time about it. Unfortunately, even I was able to see the slant in the x-rays – they’ll be impacted when they finally break through. Have to get them out soon. Bummer. Not looking forward to that. My husband is older than me by 8 years and he’s getting his out this Friday. They’ve been causing lots of problems and he didn’t even realize that they were the cause. He has all 4 of them too! I only have 2…Half of me is looking forward to seeing him with puffy chipmunk cheeks, but the other half is dreading it because he’ll be depressing to be around because of the pain. =T
Lol I love the ending… it made me laugh!
i took out a wisdom teeth yesterday[i hope i am not dumb now]It was hurting for one year but i was scared of the needle ha ha yes i’m a big baby but thanks to that expert dentist at kings county[how u doing] he told me not to be scared i trusted him he stuck me two times with the ugly needle then he yanked[is that a word] the wisdom out hooray thank you mr.doc.
haha thats weird i have to get my wisdom teeth pulled tomorrow
I currently have to go to the dentist within the coming weeks to have the “wisdom” tooth on the bottom left removed. My wisdom teeth will come in one month and then go BACK INTO my gums. Then the next month another will grow out and repeat. Currently this one has a cavity next to it and it has split my gums directly into my cavity….yes….this thing must go…
Ironically my wisdom teeth came out a month ago. litterallu. they were crowding my teeth and my denist thought it best to take them out. it didnt hurt… but i was really uncomfortable for several days cuz my whole face was swollen making me look like i had gained wait from my neck and up. now i dont ever wanna be overweight because i know what my face will look like if i do! also i was on an all liquid deit for a few days, i lost 5 lbs but i’m back to my normal weight now
unsurprisingly, i’ m possibly less wise then before…
If you have to get them taken out: the sooner the better! get it done and overwith….. and not when you have to go to a wedding!
wow. well ive just now got braces and i am so thank ful that i will never have to go through such excrutiating pain.
they dont”pull” your wisdom teeth. they CUT them out. OUCH
All four of mine are impacted…I looked at them on the x-rays, and they all came in _sideways_, three of them are still below the gumline. The dentist always asks if I want them removed (he’s a perfectionist, and one of the best dentists on the planet), but I always say no thanks.
Luckily one side of the family has a history of “gappy” teeth, whereas the other side has a history of impacted teeth…the impacted teeth compressed the gaps, and I got lucky by killing two birds with four molars!
I had six!!! Got them out when I was 11, would have had them out earlier but the doctors hand wasn’t big enough to fit in my mouth!!
I have mine, and I don’t have an extra large jaw. We did, however, eat very naturally as children. My dentist said that people who eat “close to the earth” rarely have to have their pulled.
funny thing, a friend of mine told me her grandma lived soo long sg=jhe had a third set of teeth come out, i cant say exactly which teeth they were but i guess it was just the body’s natural instinct
I was 18 when I had all 4 wisdom teeth surgically removed. Both bottom teeth were on their side pushing the other teeth together and one root had wrapped around my jaw. The top were coming in and I didn’t have any room so they were removed also before they caused any damage. After they were pulled, most of my ear aches went away.
Had all four done at the same time when I was 20 y.o. One of mine had such a root arrangement it had to be split into four pieces (OUCH!) in order to be pulled. This is also when I discovered I was allergic to penicillin. Developed a rash , swelling and a 106 temperature. So , every one is still an individual no matter how wise we may be to get rid of a bad thing whether we are born with it or not! Sure made me the wiser after I had them removed….
I hAVE TO GET MY WISDOM TEETH REMOVED MONDAY This monday!!! im scared! they are growing side ways and are clustering my teeth… Thanks for the Info… :S
Wow, I was just thinking about how I have to get my wisdome teeth out. I’m 15 and they’re still impacted so they haven’t caused any problems yet. I’m not looking forward to it. I actually was supposed to get the out last weekend but my body didn’t react well to being knocked out. So now I get to try again in 3 weeks. Right about now I’m wishing for a bigger jaw. =)
o, thats cool, yea i got mine pulled on my 16 birthday even though i asked for a car, dont always get what we want, lol
Oh the lovely wisdom teeth — THAT I WILL NEVER HAVE!!! Thanks to my mother’s side of the family my wisdom teeth will never rear their ugly heads
They do not exist whatsoever. I am really thankful that I will never have to go through that pain.
I’m 37 this September and have no wisdom teeth. They just aren’t there at all on the xrays; but then according to my hubby, it would be impossible for me to have anything regarding wisdom!
my wisdom teeth killed me.I had the most agonising week of a swollen face and worse when i had a root canal surgery done the anesthesia did not work!
If wisdom is going to be so painful, i’d rather be dumb
Mine kind of grow in, and hurt like h e double hockey sticks, than take a break for a while, than start up again, its really weird.
but I think I might have to get mine removed, (at least my bottom ones) my jaw ‘clicks’ a lot, and sometimes it hurts so bad I can’t open it all the way. and my bottom teeth are crowded, one of my front bottom teeth is being pushed back, I hope I won’t need braces
:(
ironically, my top teeth are too spaced.
and, I have big front teeth, like a beaver…
I hate my mouth
:(
I still have all four of my wisdom teeth at 24 years old. There is one that is only partially erupted, but according to x-rays there is most likely enough room to come all the way through. That’s great news for me, I’m a big baby when it comes to seeing a dentist! I just take extra good care of my molars with flossing and brushing to make sure I don’t have any issues with them.
my wisdom tooth is starting to come through… horrah! the reason im going to try and brave the pain is because all my life i have had big gaps in between my teeth and stupidly refused a brace as a stroppy teen so hopefully this ‘new tooth’ will act as a natural tooth brace for me!!! Bring it on!
I guess I will never be wise, never had wisdom teeth. My son had all four removed while in the navy. My daughter had the two bottom ones, had them removed got an abscess and ended up in the hospital for 12 days because they couldn’t rid of the infection. All in all, I am eternally grateful not to be wise.
I was born without wisdom teeth. When my dentist discovered I did not have any, he asked, “are you sure you never had them taken out?” Then he said, “you would know if you had them taken out.” He said I should consider myself lucky, and I do.
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I’ve got all mine! I am the only person in my family that does.I actually have fillings in two of them (guess they are hard to reach with the toothbrush). I had a good dentist that was willing to drill and fill. He said most dentists just pull them if they get cavities becasue they are hard to work on. That was about 10 years ago. Since then, I brush VERY carefully back there!
I had my wisdom teeth pulled when I was in bootcamp for the Navy. Well after I got my wisdom teeth pulled I was walking and I dropped my pain medicine. Someone was kind enough to help pick it up for me. I bent over to grab the medicine and so did he. As I was bending down to grab it, a big glob of blood fell out of my mouth and onto the floor. The young man who tried to help me had a horrified look on his face. So be careful that the blood from your mouth dosen’t drip out of your mouth onto the floor scaring innocent bystanders..
tis odd but i dont have and never will have wisdom teeth. my twin has them though. not sure how that worked out
just got em out today… hurts very bad
My dentist said my wisdom teeth are fine so far. Yay!
Im getting my Wisdom teeth NOW! Hurts like hell. :,(
But Im not getting rid of mine. Its supposed to be there just slap some teething medicine on it and your good! :] But..arent you supposed to only have like..34 teeth? so I guess Im on my 34. But if they keep coming in then that is so going to be a problem.
all mine were fully grown when i was in 8th grade (i was 12-13 at the time). my mouth adjusted to them after a while and i get no problems at all now. im 16 and my dentist doesnt seem to have a problem with them
My wisdom teeth came in and I didnt need to get them pooled at all. I am 27 and I never had anyproblem with them. Brush twice a day and use crest pro health mouth wash and you will be just fine. LOL
To: Mr Contreras, the book you are talking about was called, “Nutrition and Physical Degeneration” by Weston Price. It chronicalled the travels of Price to different cultures throughout the globe to study the effects of nutrition on the teeth and body.
FWIW, one of the 32 marks of an enlightened saint is the presence of an additional set of molars, giving them 36 total teeth. I’ve seen them in some of my pts before, although it’s rare. So along these lines of thinking, the more teeth you have, the wiser you would appear.
Yeah, it’s age related. I’ve also heard them referred to as “21-year-old molars” because some don’t get them until young twenties. (I however “lucked out” and got them in my mid teens.)
Set back into the jaw teeth like that are stronger, but humans no longer need them. And as well as the jaw becoming smaller many people today don’t even develop wisdom teeth, or only have two.
I had all four, and none impacted, no issues. The only reason mine were removed really was I’d had braces removed the previous year and they feared it would ruin the new alignment.
Feroze, it’s possible those were actually “12-year-old molars,” that come in around that age. Don’t be surprised if another set show up sooner or later.
A L O N G time ago the human jaw was much bigger than it is now…humans had four sets of molars for grinding their food..over many centuries as the jaw grew smaller we lost one set of molars but the third set remains in some people…there are other teeth in the human jaw that are also somtimes missing…it is best to have third molars, “wisdon teeth”, removed because many times infection forms in and around them..that experience can be quite painful…and a situation that can be avoided by “planning ahead”…to have them removed in an oral surgeon’s office under general anesthesia is the best way.
Interesting, I haven’t got mine yet but my friends have had them pulled=( ouch!
I’m 52 years old. I have all of my teeth. I have no cavities.
Hm, I think I’m one of those unlucky ones. I had all 4 wisdom teeth, and all 4 of them were impacted. In fact I just had them all removed yesterday. It wasn’t really a pleasant experience but they gave me general anesthesia so I wasn’t awake for the whole process =]. However, the pain afterwards hasn’t been too hard to manage although the stitches are annoying. The small jaw theory sounds probable to me.
im 17 and only have one growing so far =(
¡We don´t need them…If you had braces(brackets) you probably know that and,yes,my jaw is small,in case you have a sensitive mouth — you know how it …feels!
i had mine pulled about two weeks ago. it sucks. you take tranquilizer pills. have to be carried in the dentist office and then you inhale laughing gas to fall asleep. thats what i was told. i dont even remember the surgery. its what comes after that sucks though. you cant eat anything for the first 12 hours then its smoothies, yogurt, or oatmeal for the next 4-5 days. it sucks even worse when your family throws a bbq party and invite your “supportive” friends who pig out in front of you. you also have to rinse your mouth out with salt water after every meal. o and your face gets to be the size of an excercise ball too. cant talk either. its pretty fun. didnt mean to scare you future kids out there.
I remember my wisdom teeth when they came in, one of the lucky ones not to remember it, pardon the pun. However, when my brother got his to grow in, they did require the “exorcism” as you so put it. His issue was severe impacting, and he had a big mouth, in more ways than one. So I would have to argue the small-jaw theory. One interesting thing I did hear, when the term “That smarts” became mainstream as a way to denote pain, apparently, don’t quote me on this, it was coined by a young lad in Britain who did have his wisdom teeth removed, for apparently too many sugary products of the era. It “made him smart enough to avoid the cookie.” I found it amusing.
I’m a very modern man by evoutionary standards.
I’m a mature adult. I have never and will never have wisdom teeth. X-Rays from early years showed that none exist.
Every dentist confirmed this.
As you said expert anthropologists therorised that they were a prehistoric left over and were used to rip and tear meat.
University Grad in the physical sciences.
er….I think wisdom teeth is a very part of our daily lives.It’s a great article!!!!!!
I just recently had my wisdom teeth out. After it was over, the nurse said it was one of the hardest extractions she’s seen. (oh wasn’t i lucky) The doctor was practicaly sweating after getting the last of the four out, and he had to force the needle into the gum for the stiches. He said my gums were incredibly tuff. My biggest problem with this was that it couldn’t have been more painfull. The addage ‘give it time, just like novicane, it always works’ was almost tested to breaking point with me. The novicane started working towards the END of the extractions. They usually have to fill me up to the limit with the stuff, and it still doesn’t work properly, so at the begining, before starting, when they asked “does this hurt, can you feel this?” I held back a twinge and said NO. Self made pain killers FINALY kicked in somewhere in the middle. Stupid me, up untill that point i had to keep myself from passing out!
When i was done, my sister, who i told this about, and who doesn’t live with us, asked me: “why didn’t you get the surgery? Why did you decide to be awake?” I said: “Decide!?” Apparently i had a decision about all this that i didn’t know about.
i got my wisdom teeth out yesterday :/
Then why do some people have no wisdon teeth at all?
Maybe you should do some more homework!
OK, I got tired of scanning other responses. Some info, 3rd molars are the most varied in # than any other tooth in the mouth (from 0 to 12 that I’ve seen so far). Most peoples’ jaws have change growth patterns due to industrial pollution. Remote, indigenous peoples still have and have room for 3rds. Through chronic nasal soft tissue inflammation and increasing allergies, more kids breathe through their mouths, forcing a more downward growth of the jaw. This shortens the overall length of the lower jaw. I have petite female patients with tiny mouth, normal teeth and plenty of room for those molars… they have usually grown up in clean, unpolluted areas.
Also, we recommend young removal if we see a problem, because the big problems usually manifest at a later age when the trauma from the surgery is more harrowing and or dangerous. One of my patients died due to the fact his dentist left a tooth in because “it wasn’t bothering him” It had cancer around it which showed clearly on the xrays the patient brought me. 83 yr old, legally blind lady with an impacted wisdom tooth that had taken all of those years to decay, below the gum. Now bone is like cement, very traumatic to remove. Pain meds? could interfere with current meds or make her dizzy, fall and break a hip. Common: 20 year old who continually avoids getting out partially impacted tooth that is causing a cavity on the 2nd molar… I’m sure I’ll hear from him when the second molar abscesses. I can’t reach the decay due to the 3rd molar. My motto: If you can keep ‘em clean, you can keep ‘em.
Had no idea you were Bay Area
yeah well the worse pain in world is to have a inpact tooth ,i had 3 removed and i went home and passed out from the pain,thank god that will not ever happen again
I don’t have ANY wisdom teeth, period.
You state that 80-90% of people have at least ONE impacted wisdom, however my dentist made a comment about when he thought I should get my wisdom’s out, and then looked at the X-Ray. I have NONE. They’re not even up in the gum, they just don’t exist period.
I guess I missed the bullet on this one! I would have been terrified to go through that surgery!
here’s theory that i’ve heard on wisdom teeth. for those who believe in evolution, as we all know we once had tails. hence, the tailbone. as we developed over the centuries, we no longer need the tail and now we’re left with one that can only be seen on x rays.
there are some people who have wisdom teeth and some who have none or two, etc. the lucky few who never developed wisdom teeth are higher on the evolutionary scale, because they are no longer needed. BTW, i am a dental hygienist and used to work for an oral surgeon before dental hygiene school. we took wisdom teeth out all the time…
I just had my last 2 wisdom teeth taken out yesterday.
I wasn’t knocked out but only numbed because they were far out enough to just yank them.
Today I can’t open my jaw very wide and seem to have to shove food into my mouth as it won’t fit.
This isn’t a very nice experience.
This Sucks. How do people enjoy this rubbish
I had dentists telling me to remove wisdom teeth for years as they would cause problems. This was 18 year ago. I figured I would wait until problems became apparent. So far I have had no problem at all related to my wisdom teeth and neither of my last two dentists has said I have a problem. No discomfort, no cavities, nothing.
I had four and all of them had to be extracted from underneath my gums. Let me tell you, no matter how much they drug you, cutting into your gums is Not a Good Feeling.
I just got my wisdom teeth out today! I saw this post and thought, how ironic. I just had to say something about it. Mine were impacted and I got them taken out. The anesthetic made me a little sick but I am better now and not in too much pain.
I gave a big start when I signed in, and then saw the whole ‘wisdom teeth’ thing. I just barely got mine out…and I didn’t react well to it. I’ve been down for a week, and today is the first day where I don’t feel a heck of a lot of pain – only discomfort – from the removal. I’ve had to get stitches on a couple of the extraction sites, and my neck and cheeks have been turning colors I didn’t know bruises could get! I’ve been feeling kind of like a pill popper.
But my mouth does feel kind of…different. Less stuffed to the brim, or maybe that’s just me…
I like the theory about the falling out and rot kind of thing. It makes sense.
I Get mine out next Thursday.
I still have braces on that should come off in a few months so I still have a long way before I have to worry about my wisdom teeth.
I had my wisdom come in, but then another set of wisdom teeth came in again along side the old ones but my mouth is fine.
Worst experience ever!! painful i am traumatized !!
In my early 20′s I had the two top wisdoms pulled, I kept biting the inside of my mouth, no lowers to pull. My sinus problems seemed to dissapear for a while. Now I’m 48 and the son-of-a-guns are dropping again, yes a second set. Nothing like teething when your almost 50. Flossing’s going to be close to impossoble. Give me a break already I really don’t want to do this again.
Just had mine pulled out last Tuesday. I liked reading this little bit of information. Very interesting! I had been pondering the orgin of wisdom teeth as well. Thanks, Mike!
Look, if your teeth aren’t bothering you then don’t have them pulled. I’ve been to dentists all my life. I am 51 years old and still have all my wisdom teeth. They came in when I was 11 years old and our old family dentist at the time was so excited to tell me that not only were they all in, but I would have to have them taken out, and all my teeth were going to be crooked and require braces. Nothing of that nature happened. I always had beautiful perfect white teeth, no extractions and no braces took place and I wasn’t about to let it happen if it wasn’t bothering me. Dentists are too eager to extract and do other crap because it’s a money making business. I say don’t do it only unless its necessary and keep your money in your pocket and not theirs.
My Wisdom teeth got Pulled out in the Hospital it was so way up my my gums that I needed to have a
Serious Surgery by cutting my gums up to take out the Wisdom teeth they surely put me too sleep Pretty Good before the Surgery one minute I was getting ready for Surgery and then the next minute I woke up and it was over…I guess it’s from all those Drugs that they put in me to put me to sleep so I won’t Remember Crap…
Good theory about the smaller jaw….I never formed my wisdom teeth…guess that means I’m not very wise.
My sister had 6 taken out a week ago, and I have none. She must have stolen them!….Or I am just more evolved!
Is it necessary to have them removed? I never had mine removed because they were never impacted. In fact, I only grew three. I don’t know what happened to the fourth one. Maybe it decided to take a detour and got lost in route.
Got them all pulled out at once to make room for braces. It was not a pleasant experience but was also glad to be rid of the headaches they were causing.
Everyone’s been talking about molars for quite sometime now.. and I searched my mouth for them. I don’t remember having them pulled out.. maybe my mother had them pulled when I was little. Because dental office was the last place I wanted to be in.
How’s BART??? I missed taking that commute. I bet it’s very expensive now since the last time I was there.. some 20 years ago.
)
great article..i am a lucky one…all four came in perfect, that’s not to say i didn’t have my fair share of pain hehe…i love the little guys
It is so funny to read these comments. The reason we have wisdom teeth is because of evolution. Our ancestors had enough space to accommodate all the teeth including Wisdom teeth because they had lot more attrition of teeth due to fibrous diet. However, our current diet is more refined and we just do not have the same attrition of teeth. Take them out of keep them is a controversy. Finally, wisdom teeth do not cause crowding. I know that because I am an Oral surgeon and my master’s thesis is about the topic.
Some of us are born with less than the avarage amount of 4 wisdom teeth. I was only born with 2 upper wisdom teeth and both my kids were too my daughter had 3 and my son has 2 like me. I guess we are the lucky ones to have enough wisdom not to have all wisdom teeth.
I agree that wisdom teeth used to have a use but don’t anymore. It’s the same with our appendixes; nobody can figure out what they used to be used for. I just got my gallbladder removed a week ago. The surgeon told me that they don’t really have a use anymore either. He said that they were more important long ago when people only ate meat on a rare occasion. Their bodies weren’t used to the high fat so the gallbladder aided in the digestion. Now that most Americans have meat at least once a day, the gallbladder isn’t as important. Some organs (or teeth) just don’t have uses anymore and need to be removed before it causes an unnecessary problem.
“The folks at WiseGeek.com write that wisdom teeth may be an evolutionary leftover from a time when tooth loss was much more common due to rot and trauma.”
I don’t think this is the answer as tooth rot is much more common now than it was in primitive societies. Look at all the primitive cultures studied by Weston A. Price and they had beautiful, healthy teeth.
had room for all 4 of mine but the bottom 2 just would not erupt through completely and they started to decay. The doctor went ahead and pulled all of them. It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be.
I had an aunt who had 4 wisdom teeth but the top two were on the same side of her mouth, of course they had to go.
hahaha i just got my wisdom teeth out yesterday! how random is it that this would be on here the day after i got my wisdoms out. haha i look like a chipmunk. my cheeks are majorly swollen. thank you dentistry….
Wow, this was really rad. I’ve never
known so much about the wonderful
wisdom teeth until now.
Well mine all growing at the same time they really dont hurt unless I eat on their sides. So for people who get them pulled cause they wanted to they are crazy. However people who have to get them pulled all I can say is thug it out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ehh…i remember those days. I got all 4 of mines removed at once at the of age 20. I noticed everytime i yawn or open my mouth wide to eat my jaw would lock like a pitbull. It felt like my whole jaw would break, i no longer have this problem.
They might be fine in some, but I think I have a smaller model mouth and all of mine are at least partially grown in. The bottom two instantly started to decay and they have pushed my pretty line of front teeth together in an ugly zig-zag like a car pile-up. I would enjoy getting all of them removed but I imagine that’s a bucket load of cash even after insurance…
for creationists it used to help eat meat (loke mae
)
So, that’s the story of wisdom teeth – they got their name because they symbolize the onset of intelligence. Ironically, they often end up getting pulled out. Maybe that’s why humanity seems to be getting dumber by the day…
I loved that, too true and thank you for saying it.
Having wisdom teeth was an advantage to a meat eater, as a replacement for teeth which were invariably lost due to the lack of any sort of dental care in tribal societies. Anyone who lost their molars would have had a hard time eating properly at a time when reproduction and competing for mates was most crucial, that is, early adulthood. Wisdom teeth come in at about this time. Wisdom teeth are a definite evolutionary advantage.The “size of the jaw” argument is flawed, as it does not explain the late presentation. The “replacement” argument does. It is unfortunate, in a sense, that due to good dental health we are now keeping all our teeth and are needing to artificially remove them, something which would have been taken care of by disease and malnutrition.
.
I like my wisdom teeth.
Now, get a shave and change your shirt.
actually we have to get wisom teeth taken out because of all the cross breeding between races. It messes up the genetics of our anatomy in a way.
Firstly, it’s cool to read that there are other people (besides some in my family) who don’t have adult teeth under the baby ones (I’m missing 3).
) removed when I was 31. I am a MAJOR dental-phobe, but aside from having some pain when the anesthesia wore off, looking like a chipmunk and having to eat pureed/soft foods for a few days, I had absolutely no problems. Everybody’s system is different, but I think that if the surgeon keeps each patient’s individual needs/concerns in mind and the procedure is done correctly, in these ‘high-tech’ days (I had mine out way back in 1991), having wisdom teeth removed shouldn’t have to be a horrendous experience. 
On wisdom teeth, I had 3 (yep, missing one of those, too
this is funny cuz i just got my wisdom teeth pulled yesterday, 08/07/09……..lol
I have had neither wisdom teeth nor cavities in my lifetime. I feel VERY blessed.
<
Bottom line is …. no matter what age your wisdom teeth decide they want to grow….. the key is that your mouth and existing have enough room for them to grow. I know adults that still have their’s without any problem where myself on the other hand had all 4 pulled in high school because there was no room for them to grow in. That’s why people’s teeth get pushed around hense … crooked teeth. Your dentist will know if there is enough room for them.. most of the time there is not. The procedure to have them removed it not simple but completely worth it.
I actually got all four of mine out today. I’m 17 so the roots weren’t deep. It really wasn’t a bad experience. I had very little pain. The best thing i can say is to eat normal solid food to give you muscles a work out. It really helps.
I have all my teeth
To flipper above, you said you freaked out the dentists when they saw you wouldn’t have any wisdom teeth? Those must have been some very new dentists. There is a small chance that people will never get them, myself being one of them and I’m nearly 25. But it’s not unheard of. I’d go to a new dentist if I were you, lol.
Most of my family members had them. I got lucky, but now my husband teases me and says I have no wisdom. He will have all 4 with only 1 coming in impacted.
I personally would hope they could find a way to remove them with less pain and agrivation.
I just had mine removed last week. Absolutely horrible pain. I’ve already been through knee surgerys and such before, but this has just been killer. Not to mention the constant flushing out your mouth after every little thing you eat. It’s not much fun at all!
3 of my wisdom teeth had to be removed because they were causing me great pain.
I was in the Army (73-76) guys were getting a wizdom tooth pulled and 2 or 3 days off and they were living it up on those days off.
I never missed work, or anything like that.
Temptation for that free vacation fun time finally got to me and I went to the Dentist – The Dentist I got took all 4 of mine at one sitting – mercy, my following days off were not fun filled vacation, running around ones like the guys who had only 1 tooth removed.
Lesson learned, laughing memory gained.
My parents had the dentist pull all 4 of mine when i was 17. All were impacted, one had been infected. Dentist did it late on a Friday afternoon; whatever drugs they gave me took care of any,(conscious), pain. As i understand it, the brain still registers thus remembers pain. I was acquainted at one time with a Hispanic man who underwent prostate surgery & became severely depressed over his perceived loss of virility. He killed himself. It was attributed to the use of anesthetia. Frankly, I’d be delighted by a loss of virility. Poor guy.
Hmm, i didn’t found wisdom teeth expugnation anything scary. 2 injections of local anesthetic (free of charge-oh i love living in free healthcare country) and everything you feel is dentist’s hand force when he is chiseling your teeth out. Afterwards, I spit blood couple of days and used weak analgesics (to prevent or relief pain)
BTW i read somewhere WT are evolutionary remnant from the days we hung out on trees and ate only plants and fruits. When we had to adapt to climate changes and consequentially loss of main food source and start hunting, they become obsolete.
My older sister had to have all 4 cut out because they were impacted.
My younger brother didn’t have third molars at all.
I was in the middle. I only had the top ones grow and they came in straight. I guess I have a big mouth.
They were extracted at different times because they developed cavities and they didn’t have any bottom teeth to chew against.
My son is getting his four pulled tomorrow.
None of them are impacted.
He is between 16.5 and 17 years of age.
I’ll let you know how it goes If I remember to come back here.
all four of mine are coming out on thursday
EVOLUTION IS FAKE
JESUS FTW!
…lol
if you get your wisdom teeth out, do NOT under any circumstances let the dentist or oral surgeon drug you with Midazolam or Versed. That stuff is dangerous, and causes permanant brain damage, severe anxiety and depression and PTSD. Please refuse sedation if you want to avoid these horrible and permanent side effects of this evil poison!!!!
how did you manage to dodge getting your wisdom teeth pulled out?
My wisdom teeth came in one one side only. Because of an unfortunate incident with a cherry pit in a Mexican dessert it cracked my molar and without dental insurance at the time it had to be removed. Thankfully I got to have my wisdom teeth come in and replace the molar I already lost. My sis had horribly painful braces. She had her braces off for 2 1/2 years before her teeth moved back. Her wisdom teeth came in about 4 years ago and they were impacted and had to be surgically removed. She just doesn’t seem to have any luck. I wish I would have taken pictures and put them on our xmas cards of mouth stuffed with cotton and her drooling drugged out of her gourd. I just couldn’t do it. She looked so sad. She was sitting the through the drool and cotton and singing “iddle bbunie food food hoopie frow da forested” to her bunny slippers. Then she kept falling off the couch. Sad sad day.
Interesting article. I guess my family is the weird one here. My bro and I had extra teeth–yep still shedding teeth into my freshmen year in college. I’m 44 and still have all my wisdom teeth that are fully functional and never any problems. Altho, my hubbie has called me an “alien” for years for my teeth and other oddities.
All four of my wisdom teeth were growing out of the back of my jaw, straight into the rest of my molars. The dentist that took out all of my wisdom teeth didn’t spare drill or saw. I was pulling tooth and bone out of my gums for a week. Not to mention the swallowing of blood.
Not everyone has wisdom teeth; ive never had them at all. I never developed even the roots for them. i guess im just not wise enough ;]
mmm that is nice to know. i have to get mine out soon or i am going to be in a world of pain do to them growing into my other teeth.
Two days ago I started to feel REALLY bad pain in the far back of my mouth. I told my mom (by the way I’m 15) and she said it’s probably my wisdom tooth. She said she had hers pulled out when she was 16 because it grew in completely sideways. My dad had his taken out when he was 15 before it even grew in. I may have to have mine taken out before it grows in because it’s REALLY painful.
I was blessed to have the gene of no wisdom teeth passed down to me. I have never had wisdom teeth,and being 46 yrs old i don’t think i will get any. However,my daughter just had hers pulled and man did those things look hecka wicked. I mean if teeth could be evil, well wisdom teeth are the ones… I pity you for what you wisdom teeth sufferers go through. those roots look really nasty…..really nasty. I wonder what the purpose is for getting such severe teeth later in life? Hmmm….
I had to have all of mine surgically removed because none of them really “erupted” (I think one of them did but barely). Two of them were growing in completely sideways (!!!!) so they were only screwing up the work my orthodontist was doing at the time with my braces.
Yeah that was a horrible experience. My youngest brother is getting his removed soon and when he asked me to tell him about what I went through I said “Let’s not have this conversation”. Didn’t want to freak him out completely. I told him not to let our mother tell him her wisdom teeth story, either, hers is equally awful and totally wigged me out before I got mine removed.
I’ve been curious as to the odd naming of Wisdom Teeth for some time. I’m grateful for this article, it answered a long standing mental question and gave me some amusement to read. I’ve lately been told my final ‘wisdom’ tooth is Impacted and will most probably need removal if it does not correct itself within 3 months. Wonderful are the wisest of teeth?
I’m one of the lucky few who haven’t had to have theirs removed. They never grew in so I guess they aren’t there. Which is cool in my book, the less I have to go to the dentist the better. Twice a year is plenty for me lol.
Wow, this is highly coincidental. I’m having oral surgery in a couple of days to remove all 4 of my wisdom teeth. They’re not “technically” impacted – there’s actually enough room in my mouth. Nonetheless, they decided it would be a good idea to grow in nearly perpendicular to my other teeth!
thats really interesting… both my parents had theirs pulled…
when i was a kid i fell off the top part of my bunk bed and hit my face off of a old cherry wood dresser. i knocked out four teeth….two on the top, two on the bottom. as i grew my “wisdom” teeth grew in, needless to say, they grew in perfectly.
i am 26 and they started growing when i was about 12-13 years old. i never (knock on wood) had a problem since then. and now i have a beautiful set of FULL teeth!!
Ok this is funny i went to the dentist the other day to look at an xray of my teeth anyways I had no sign of wisdom teeth it was real funny
I am the apparently rare person without wisdom teeth. As in, not only are they not coming in, I simply don’t have them at all! Nope, not even the root. The thing is, my teeth have spaces so they may actually have fit if I had them. How common/rare is this?
I am a Dental Hygienist. My boss of over thirty years was killed in an automobile accident. I had a wisdom tooth that he was going to extract for me, because I had a small cavity on the buccal and I did not want to fill it. I did not have an opposing tooth on the mandibular area. He used to ask me everyday if I wanted to extract the wisdom tooth and I always said we would do it later.
I am 57 and I had not had a tooth extracted since I was a young child. After he passed away I ended up having to have it removed by another dentist. I did not have any problems afterwards, because the tooth did not have to be removed surgically. The odd thing is…is that I really miss that dadburn tooth!!! LOL
So my son had all four taken out this morning around 9. He was in there 45 minutes or so.
Took the anesthesia.
Gave him one single ibuprofen at 10:30 am.
Nothing since then.
He will take antibiotics for 5 days.
Eating and drinking normally already.
Only side effect..left side of chin/lip still a little numb. Apparently they use long acting freezing nowadays. He has been frozen for most of the day.
Bled for maybe the first five hours. Controlled with gauze. Nothing since then.
So all in all no big deal at all for him anyway.
I’m 22 and still haven’t had any wisdom teeth pop up.. I hope I never have to go thru that! I’m terrified of the dentist enough as it is!
Hey, Mike: You’re doing a great job. Thanks for the many varied and interesting questions!
I don’t remember where I read it, in the last 6 months, but the presence of wisdom teeth has been correlated with less heart disease. Poor dental care is linked to heart disease, and the wisdom teeth seem to counteract this. So they aren’t necessarily vestigial teeth left over from caveman days, just as the appendix has been found to help supply the large intestine with needed bacteria after severe illness.
But they DO crowd. Maybe dentists should be pulling four second molars instead!
Right now i got a impacted tooth next to my wisedom teeth.go figure
I’m going in 20 minutes to see if i need them removed and i’m scared out of my pants!!!!!!!!!!! i’ve heard such horror stories.
i’m not ready to not eat for 4 days 
For the longest time my dentist told me I DIDN’T develop wisdom teeth. Now at age 33 I have a top WT cutting through. It’s ok. but in the process found out that I do infact have my top 2 wisdom teeth but no bottom WT. So I guess over time we humans aren’t finding a need for them so why grow them. My daughter didn’t develope 2 of her molars so now we are hoping she gets her wisdom teeth to fill it in.
Before I could have my braces put on I had to have a total of 8 teeth pulled including my wisdom teeth
actually, one of my teeth had a rot in it… i either had a root canal, or have it pulled in hope that the wisdom tooth came in write… i went with the pulling.
JKJK
then, ironically enough, one of my other wisdom teeth wasn’t even there!!! So, obviously, I’m more evolved than anyone
I’m 14 years old and I got all 4 of mine out this summer, so much for wisdom!
i’m 30 now and only have 3. the third one showed up last year (took me a little longer to wisen up). I never thought of getting them removed because they’ve never bothered me.
My wisdom teeth grew in when I was about 20. Pushed my front teeth together a little but it only hurt a little as they grew. Not a peep for 10 years and then one broke when I was 30. The pain was awful. It felt like a satellite or radar could pick up the signal my tooth was pulsing out. Went to the dentist, had X-rays. Turns out I only had three wisdom teeth. Went to the oral surgeon, they put me under using gas to relax(nice) and then an I.V. When I woke up I asked when we were going to start and they told me that is was already over. Other than changing the bloody gauze( first day only) and eating mashed potatoes for a week it really wasn’t that bad. I didn’t even need any pain medication.
lol i got my wiz teeth at the age of 10 is that good or bad?
oh yeah i have all 4 of them on each end
and im like 11 3/4 now so wierd
i’m glad to be one of the evolved few. no wisdom teeth (i’m in my 30′s)! my older sister had serious dental problems…head gear, braces, cavities, rotten teeth that needed to be pulled and now wisdom teeth. her daughter is starting to experience the same. i feel for those of you that have to suffer such problems.
I had wisdom teeth extracted when I was 18 yrs old. They hurt so badly. The dentist put me to sleep for the procedure. I have root canal and crown done, the insurance paid only half. The crown costs about $1,200, used to be less. I don’t know if my dentist ripped me off. I love going to the dentist, I go every 6 months for cleaning, if he detects any problem with my teeth, he’ll make an appointment for me to come see him again. I have straight teeth (never had braces), no cavity, no gum disease or whatever. I read on Ann Landers (I still keep that article), if you have gum disease/ infections, it can effect your blood stream and you can die from it. Actually, the lady who wrote to Ann Landers, her brother died from it.
I’m actually wearing braces right now and it SUCKS.
They little pieces on them keep on falling out and it’s HORRIBLE. Then after a half-year in these, I’ll have to get a half-year in retainers.
I’ve already gone throught a half-year with braces
All four of mine are impacted, and the dentist want’s them out…I’m not too sure on this though, they aren’t bothering me and I want to know if it’s truly necessary. T_T why me?
that’s so weird you posted something on wisdom teeth seeing as how i just visited somebody who had them removed today. lol.
I had 10, yes TEN wisdom teeth. My dentist was so excited about this that copies of my x-rays are in his dental ‘oddities’ journal. He said, in 35 years of practice, that he’d never seen that many wisdom teeth in one person.
I had 3 (that had already erupted) removed when I was 14, and the other 7 taken out under general anesthetic when I was 27. The headaches in between those ages were intense, as the extra teeth in my tiny jaw were pressing on all kinds of nerves. They had to break my jaw to get one out, and I ended up having to eat only soft, blended foods for almost three months. The nerve damage from the break is finally healed after 10 years.
What I wouldn’t give to have had a normal set of teeth. Guess I’m an evolutionary throwback!
A few days ago i got 2 of my 4 wisdom teeth removed and it hurts really bad once the effect of the anesthesia runs out… not to mention of the entire day bleeding and having a rough throat the whole day because of the drinking of blood. Since the day i got them removed i’ve lost weight and have slept most of the day. But if hadn’t removed them, the work my braces did would be thrown away because my teeth would all be moved by those wisdom teeth. Here are a few tips for people removing there wisdom teeth:
1. Try not to wash your mouth too much the first days (This can slow down the healing of your mouth).
2.Brush your teeth trying not to hurt the area of the extraction.
3.Don’t eat fats, chili or irritants.
4.Use Straws to drink stuff, helps a lot.
5.Put a towel above your pillow if you don’t want it to get full of blood (You can’t close your mouth very well so you might wanna put a towel to not make a mess).
Good Luck!
i didnt’ have to deal with having my wisdom teeth pulled out. my dentist decided to do a pre-emptive removal of the teeth that would have blocked them when they came in.
it was easier to cut out the 4 back ones and rearrange teeth to give them room than to wait until i was older and do actual surgery.
so i had some teeth pulled and got braces to prevent any problems.
I’m still waiting for my 4th wisdom tooth to come in. I have 3 and so far I have no problems. They came in straight and I am living just fine with them. Occasionally I will bite the side of my gums, but that has happened without them. Maybe I was blessed with close-to-perfect teeth? I have never had braces, although I should take better care of them (because I don’t).
Just my commentary! =) I wish all the best with their teeth history.
Well here is one for your records. My step dad went to the dentist years ago when he was about 20. Had his wisdom teeth (all 4) removed. Dentist said he done and healed great. He was having pain about 20 years later. 3 grew back! He had those removed. Again this dentist said your healed… I think it was 5 years ago they did an x-ray for a routine cleaning. They found another tooth impacted that was where one of the other 3 had been removed. This dentist explained that very few people in the world have this condition & they are not sure why they continue to regrow new teeth and they are generally the wisdom teeth.
i had all 4 of them removed yes it hurt and i was awake for the whole process.
Mine didn’t finish coming through till my late 20′s. I’ve never had a problem with them though, and I’ve hardly heard of anyone else needing any out.
In the UK, the official position is not to remove wisdom teeth that are free from disease, even if they are impacted. In the USA, the AAOMS “strongly recommends that wisdom teeth be removed by the time the patient is a young adult”.
It’s all about the US medical system trying to make more money. Just like male circumcision, which has died out in Canada, the UK, Australia, never happened in Europe and South America, but still goes on in the USA. It’s BS, but it’s a way for doctors to make money, so they think up new reasons to have it done, and reasons why it has to be done asap, so that it’s not some other doctor that gets the money.
I am now 21 years old and none of my wisdom teeth have grown in yet. Is that good or bad? I’m wondering if they I will get lucky and they never come in.
And at the same time humanity is getting smarter. Let’s look at the glass as half full in this world of half-empty [;
I have 6 wisdom teeth in total – only 2 of them actually grown. Don’t know if’m wiser than normal, but I knoooow my gums hurt!
I had my wisdom teeth removed, but oddly enough I only grew the bottom ones. The top ones never appeared. I guess I lucked out.
hahaha i am sitting at home recovering from my wisdom teeth surgery and i read this.. small world!! as long as you get them out before they become impacted you should be fine im on my 3rd day of recovery and have felt very little pain, just the sutures tugging at each corner of my mouth. To avoid dry sockets, be sure to rinse your mouth with saltwater every three hours a day for the first week!
well, my jaw is large enough that i dont have to have mine pulled, actually, i have room for another set of molars…lol
Wow great thread not only lost my wisdom but all of my upper teeth on wednesday last and had a complete set on the same day still a little sore. bluboy
I only have three wisdom teeth. I don’t know what happened to the fourth one. It never showed up. I wonder if it plans to show up sometimes soon. Maybe, it got lost somehow. Since I have never encountered any problems with them, I feel it’s wise to keep them around at least for now. I have gotten so used to them now. I may miss them too much.
While it’s not that common to keep the wisdom teeth in what I’ve seen and read of, what about not getting a second set of permanent teeth at all ever? The baby teeth or primary ones just get harder as one gets older. I have a cousin that this happened to, she went to the dentist and had xrays done and nothing was there when they checked for the second set of teeth.
my mother who is 52 years old has just confirmed she has a wisdom tooth coming through!i dont no whether this has anything to do with your genes as my grandad, her father who is 79 years old, still has his own teeth, which are perfect.i, the grand-daughter had my wisdom teeth come through when i 14-15 years old, i am 28 years old at present and i wish i had their genes, they dont even have many wrinkles, my grandad only has a very small one on his forehead!
had my wisdom teeth pulled out and I was very lucky because my wisdom teeth came in straight without any problemes. It made easier for the oral surgeon to remove them, he didn’t have to cut my jaw or gum to gain access to them. I was awake for the whole thing too, had laughing gas and novocaine. My wisdom teeth were pulled out because there were deep cavities and it was better to have them removed. Only the upper right hand wisdom tooth bothered me, I couldn’t chew on it without some pain. I was lucky too after the wisdom teeth were pulled out, there was some pain, nothing that over counter pain meds couldn’t handle. I had some swelling on my face, more on the right hand side because I had two wisdom teeth pulled out, and one on the left hand side. My fouth wisdom tooth never came in because I wasn’t born with it. It wasn’t fun having my wisdom teeth pulled, but once my mouth recovered, where my upper right hand wisdom tooth was, the pain is gone.
Two of my wisdom teeth need to be removed, i’m scared