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The Lifecycle of a Tooth

You’ve had teeth as long as you can remember. Now you’re going to take your kids to see an Austin dentist. It really takes you back to see them going through the same things that you went through at their age.

Did you ever stop to really think how your teeth developed and changed throughout your lifetime? How about how they will continue to change as time goes on?

Few people realize that they already had the beginnings of teeth in their gums on the day they were born. They were small but they even had tooth enamel. They were there all right and it wasn’t long before they started giving you a lot of misery. By the age of three months or so you began teething. Your folks probably tried a host of home remedies and over the counter fever reducers to quiet you down. Until all twenty primary teeth (or “baby teeth”) were through the gum line you were probably just plain fussy.

But by the age of about three years you had a full complement of fully functional teeth and you were eating about anything on the table. Your folks had already taken you to your first dental visit as recommended by the American Pediatric Dentistry Society. They were unhappily surprised to find that you indeed had developed a small decay area in one of your molars and needed it filled. Like many parents they had believed that primary teeth didn’t need to be filled since they don’t last long anyway.

Your dentist had to set them straight though. If left untreated the cavity in a primary tooth will get larger and possibly infected. What’s worse is that the decaying tooth will have a harmful effect of the permanent tooth developing underneath. With dental fillings in place, you were getting used to the notion of adult food. One day though when eating a hearty meal you started to experience loose teeth. How dismaying when you realized that all the teeth you had were about to come out!

How relieved you were when you were informed that the reason they were falling out was because your body was growing and larger, secondary teeth were coming in to replace the primary teeth. Although, the tooth that you put under your pillow for the tooth fairy was without roots it had them at one time. The root simply dissolved and was reabsorbed by your body. That’s why the tooth came out so easily. This process continued until you were fourteen or so and had 28 permanent teeth. They were working fine and other than a few more fillings and regular dental hygiene, you more or less took them for granted.

That is until after you graduated High School. Then you started feeling aching jaws that your dentist knew was a sign that your wisdom teeth were trying to come in. You didn’t see any need for it but he recommended that they be extracted. Your friends talked about it and had you worried. But when all was said and done you were glad they were gone. After a brief recovery period you were back to normal. Years passed and you had very few problems with your teeth. Some old fillings needed to be replaced; a few more were needed.

And now you’re watching your children go through a similar process. It will be a little bit different for them. They will have sealants which may prevent cavities from ever forming. They may never dread the general anesthetic as you did since the dentist now uses a laser to vaporize decay.

Come to think of it, going to the dentist is a lot different now for your children.