Wisdom Teeth

People the world over have been paying attention to tooth care for centuries. The Babylonians used a chewing stick in 3500 B.C. to clean the teeth and mouth like a toothpick. The first toothbrush was invented by the Chinese in the 15th century, and early toothbrushes were made of stiff animal hair from wild boars and horses. The Egyptians were very concerned about dental hygiene, as evidenced by the fact that many Egyptians were buried with small tree branches that they used to clean their teeth. Taking care of teeth has long been a concern of civilized societies around the globe. You’d think that with today’s modern technology, tooth care would be absolutely flawless, right? The truth is actually far from that—unless a toothbrush is kept sanitary, brushing your teeth may actually contribute to tooth decay and gum disease. And … Read more

Written by Jenny Hope Brushing and flossing your teeth could save you from a heart attack, claim experts. Doctors found those with the worst blockages in their arteries had the most severe gum disease. There is mounting evidence of a link between gum disease and heart disease, but a study claims to be the first to show that the severity of each disease may also be connected. Chronic gum disease is called periodontitis, which occurs when waste material or plaque collects around the teeth and irritates the gums. Plaque is removed when teeth are looked after properly. However, failure to brush and floss can lead to the irritated gums becoming infected. Teeth become loose and can even fall out. It is not clear how gum disease may trigger heart problems, although it is thought that bacteria released from the infected … Read more

Written By Brian Matthews Recently, my stepson Mark had his “wisdom teeth” removed. Mark is 12, but according to the oral surgeon, he has the jaw of a 17-year-old. This was just the information Mark needs to further boost his growing sense of being. I imagine Mark being in school bragging to a girl at lunch that his jaw is really old enough to be in high school. Girls like it when you talk about the relative skeletal ages you possess, right? I wish I knew where he got the jaw of a 17-year-old. I have the toenails of a man three years post mortem and the teeth of someone 27 years older than me. This is why I finally made an appointment to go to the dentist. I wasn’t avoiding a visit to the dental professionals because I didn’t … Read more

While there is no way to verify this, some dentists speculate that wisdom teeth are a vestige from the days when our ancestors literally bit off more than they could chew on a daily basis. It’s thought that the Stone age diet often consisted of coarse, rough foods that required more chewing power. As a result, the jawbones of our ancestors were larger and accommodated 32 teeth with ease. In addition, in the wild, teeth had a tendency to fall prey to decay or get knocked out. If someone lost a tooth, the wisdom teeth would usually push the rest forward to fill in the gap. However, evolution continued and the human diet changed to include softer, more processed foods that were less challenging to our pearly whites and jaws. Losing teeth became less of an issue, and wisdom teeth … Read more

I wanted to say that I am not messing around here. Oral surgeons and dentists really can change your life for the worst. If it happened to me, it can happen to you. I have suffered 24/7 everyday since my wisdom teeth were removed. My head is always pounding and it’s a struggle to live normally anymore. My quality of life is substantially diminshed and I am not doing what I want to be doing with my life right now. I see doctors all the time, try all sorts of medications, do a lot of research, and it doesn’t change anything.  For 1 in 100 people wisdom teeth removal causes permanent nerve damage. That’s pretty good odds that you or someone you know could be damage pretty substantially. Also you or someone you know could have a headache that does … Read more