This thread about dental oddities made me wonder. I’m 22 and have not had even the slightest hint of a wisdom tooth. Nothing. Nada. I checked my teeth, and have two molars, two bicuspids, a canine, and two incisors on each side. I admit my tooth knowledge is lacking, so maybe it’s three molars and one bicuspid, I don’t know (Upon looking at a mouth diagram on WebMD, it appears I was initially write about two and two.) Either way, it comes out to 28 teeth in all (yes, I’ve got all my teeth. Yes, they’re all adult teeth. Yes, they’re all real.)
I’ve known several people who have gotten their wisdom teeth in high school and college, and others I have no idea cause it’s just never came up, so maybe they’ve had them come in, or maybe not. Is there a normal time? I was always under the impression that it was at the end of puberty/adolesence. Do some people never get them? Can I get them in my 40’s? About a year ago my dad had to have one removed, but I’m 90% sure it was because his bridge work/other teeth moved somehow, not because a new one grew in.
On, while we’re on the topic, what are wisdom teeth for? Why do they appear (usually) after all the other adult teeth are already there, and why are there no baby teeth versions of them? Do we even know?
I’ve known people to get them in anywhere from fourteen to twenty-two, and I’m sure the top of the age range could be much higher.
You may be missing some or all of your wisdom teeth, or they could be impacted (set in the jaw in such a way that they can’t come in). If it’s the latter case, sometimes they still need to be removed. In any case, if you’re curious about your wisdom teeth, ask your dentist next time you go in…he/she’s got access to the X-rays.
What pasunejen said. I’m, urp, middle aged, and my upper wisdom teeth never did “erupt.” They’re covered by my gums, and just feel like another part of bony jaw - but I know they’re there; I’ve seen the pics. I’ve been told there’s no problem with leaving them in, but of course you should ask your dentist about yours.
I work for a dentist. The youngest age I’ve seen them erupt is 14. The oldest was 60+. That was a surprise to everyone - patient, dentist, oral surgeon.
Mine came in around 19 - the same time as my baby was teething. Talk about empathy! I didn’t have any problems with them (other than the fact that they hurt cutting through the gum). That was probably because I had four other molars removed as a teenager to make room in my mouth before putting on braces. If those teeth had still been in, there’s no way there’d have been room for the wisdom teeth.
As for “what are they for?”; that’s a why question, and science doesn’t like those. It’s been hypothesized that in the bad old days when we were gnawing on raw roots and chewing open nuts and nibbling on bones to get out the marrow, our teeth would wear away. By about 18 years or so, at least a few molars were likely to have cracked and fallen out completely. So, viola! Our bodies have spare molars that come in when we need them to keep grinding at hard food. In a mouth missing molars (like mine) the wisdom teeth come in and move forward in the jaw, essentially becoming just another molar. My wisdom teeth work fine as chewing surfaces.
I’m typing this as I’m searching the boards to find relief for this wisdom tooth that’s coming in right now. I intend on going to the dentist soon, but I need relief now. Oh dear God it’s excruciating. I’m 24 (about 4 months shy of 25) and I just woke up yesterday morning with a sore jaw – then in the middle of the day it evolved into something painful. Now it’s an “dear lord and all that is holy make it stop” kind of pain. The only reason I’m able to type this is because I have an ice pack to the side of the mouth and a little bit of pain killers in the body.
Two of mine came in when I was 28. One waited another year. The last one hasn’t come in yet, and doesn’t seem to mind just sitting around and being not-in. I’m 31 now.
I don’t mind having them late, except the dentist that flat-out called me a liar about it - “No, absolutely not. You’ve had them for years and just didn’t notice.”
…Yeah. Thing is, I DID notice when they started to come in, because it hurt a bit, like teething. Just how unobservant would you have to be to not notice growing new teeth?
Interesting that I noticed this post. I’m getting ready to turn 32, and last weekend (Sunday night, to be precise) I started noticing a pain in my jaw. The pain increased through the week, and I am hoping that it is actually subsiding a bit … I’m pretty sure I am getting in a tooth, but is seems to be coming in almost at the crux of my jaw, and slightly off to the side. I have another one on top that feels as if it is growing out the side of my gums, but it has been like that for years and has never bothered me.
Don’t have any - not hidden in the jaw, nothing. My dentist said it happens but is rare, said he’d never met anyone else who completely dodged all four of those bullets.
I guess I’m lucky and a freak all at once. My wisdom teeth started coming in when I was 12, which makes me the youngest so far. I don’t recall it hurting much, just a bit of discomfort. Plus they came in straight and with plenty of room, so I’ve never experienced all of the wisdom teeth issues so many people have.
Surprise! You probably don’t have wisdom teeth, then. (Or they’re still in your jaw somewhere.) There are 12 year molars that come in around, well, 12 years of age. Here’s a list of general teeth eruption dates (“wisdom teeth” are called 3rd molars here.)
Everything was early, but I can’t remember any specific dates, just a bunch of surprised comments from the dentist. I was an early bloomer in general - most people thought I was at least 16 when I was 12.
