Wising Up About Wisdom Teeth

From the creator

This is the VOA Special English Health Report, from http://voaspecialenglish.com | http://facebook.com/voalearningenglish Wisdom teeth are normally the last teeth to appear. This usually happens when people are in their late teen years or early twenties -- in other words, when they are older and wiser. Wisdom teeth are molars, or chewing teeth, at the back of the mouth. The third set of molars, if you have them, are your wisdom teeth. They can grow into place normally and never cause a problem. But often there is not enough room for them in the mouth. They might crowd other teeth. Sometimes they even push sideways through the gums. An impacted wisdom tooth is one that fails to completely rise through the gums -- the term is erupt. Wisdom teeth that only partially erupt can leave space for bacteria to enter around the tooth. Infection is a risk in these cases. Wisdom teeth that are not well aligned and become impacted are often removed.People should have the placement of their wisdom teeth examined between the ages of sixteen and twenty. X-rays can show wisdom teeth that are below the gums. The American Dental Association says removal is generally advised when wisdom teeth only partly break through the gums. Removal is also advised if there is a chance that poorly aligned wisdom teeth will damage other teeth. And removal is called for in cases where fluid collects around a wisdom tooth that is partly or fully below the gum.But why do we have wisdom teeth if we often need t

Published 2011-09-15 · Watch on YouTube ↗
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