Your mouth is a very vital part of your body; contributing greatly to your total wellbeing, as well as your ability to eat and speak. The mouth is incomplete without the teeth. The teeth function greatly in speech and ingestion of food.
It is common knowledge that our teeth help in chewing and ingesting food; they are notable for playing vital roles in speech articulation.
These pearly whites need optimum attention to ensure they play their roles, and this begins with proper brushing. To get dental care tips, you can contact Smile 4 U for a Specialist Dentist near Croydon. The teeth do not have the same shape and size; they have different shapes and perform different roles at the moment.
Before we proceed to the roles of these beautiful pearly whites, let’s examine the anatomy and development of the teeth.
How the Human Teeth Develop
Through the series of growth & development that occur in human beings, two sets of teeth are developed: The Primary/milk teeth and Permanent/Adult teeth. Although the development periods are different, the process is similar. Some important facts about the development procedure of human teeth as per revealed by the renowned dentist are given below:
- Each tooth sprout in a symmetrical way. It means that the left-sided top molar and the right-sided top molar grows at the same time. This applies to other teeth in the mouth.
- The development of the milk teeth begins during the early stages of the second trimester of pregnancy. It, however, becomes visible at around the sixth month of age.
- The tooth crown is first of all formed before the root. The root, however, continues to grow even after the eruption of the tooth.
- A child has the complete 20 primary teeth between age 2 and 3 which will be in place till age 6. These teeth begin to remove between the ages of 6 and 12 in order to give way for the eruption of the permanent teeth.
- The permanent teeth are 32 in number.
Anatomy of the Tooth
A tooth has two main parts: The Crown and the root. The crown is the visible white part while the root of the tooth is the inner part that is deeply inserted into the gum. On the microscopic level, each tooth has four types of tissue that build it. They are as follows:
- Enamel: The enamel is the visible covering of the tooth crown. This tissue is harder than a bone as it consists of phosphorous, hydroxyapatite and calcium. The major role of the enamel is to protect fragile tissues within the tooth.
- Dentin: This is located below the enamel. Although it is calcified, it is not as hard as the enamel putting it at higher risk of decay if the enamel should wear away. It looks like a bone.
- Cementum: It is a calcified yellowish substance covering the tooth’s root. It also stabilizes the tooth root into the bone. It is covered by bones and the gums.
- Pulp: The pulp houses the blood vessels, nerves and soft tissues for the provision of nutrients and stimuli to the teeth. It is located at the center of the teeth.
Roles of the Teeth
There are four types of teeth in humans, each having its specific function. To get dental care tips on how to care for these types of teeth, Smile 4 Uis the best dental clinic to contact.
The functions of the four teeth are as follow:
- Incisors: These eight (8) teeth with sharp edges occupy the front part of the oral cavity. They have the shape of small chisels. The incisors are the first to sprout usually at 6 months of age.
FUNCTION: The incisors are useful for biting. They help to bite into dense food such as apple.
- Canines: They sit comfortably beside the incisors. They come with sharp and pointy surfaces.
FUNCTION: With their pointy sharp edges, canines aid the tearing of food.
- Premolars: These eight set of teeth are arranged close to the canines. Their surfaces are flat. Four premolars occupy the top while the other four are fixed to the bottom jaw.
FUNCTION: Their flat surface enables them to crush and grind food into smaller pieces.
- Molars: These molars are the strongest and biggest teeth in the mouth. These 12 teeth occupy the inner part of the mouth. Out of the 12 molars, four are regarded as the wisdom teeth (third molars).
FUNCTION: The molars aids the grinding of food with their large surface area before the food gets pushed to the back of the mouth by the tongue.
To ensure your teeth stay in good shape, you need to brush and floss on a regular basis. You can have access to dental care tips by dental experts in our Dental clinic. At Smile 4 U Dental Practice, our specialist Dentists in Croydonoffer professional dental care.