{"id":169,"date":"2025-02-03T20:10:02","date_gmt":"2025-02-03T20:10:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rossavefamilydental.com\/blog\/?p=169"},"modified":"2025-04-09T20:12:12","modified_gmt":"2025-04-09T20:12:12","slug":"great-wisdom-tooth-mystery-why-have-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rossavefamilydental.com\/blog\/2025\/02\/03\/great-wisdom-tooth-mystery-why-have-them\/","title":{"rendered":"The Great Wisdom Tooth Mystery: Why Do You Have Them?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-medium\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rossavefamilydental.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/image-300x200.png\" alt=\"Close up of patient holding a giant model tooth\" class=\"wp-image-170\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.rossavefamilydental.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/image-300x200.png 300w, https:\/\/www.rossavefamilydental.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/image.png 360w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Roughly half the population doesn\u2019t have enough room in their mouths to accommodate <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rossavefamilydental.com\/wisdom-teeth-removal.html\">wisdom teeth<\/a>. If so many people will need to extract these third molars anyway, why do you have them at all?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That\u2019s a great question. Experts aren\u2019t completely sure why people grow wisdom teeth, but they have at least two theories that could explain this mystery. Keep reading to learn more!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Wisdom Teeth Made Sense When Jaws Were Larger<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>A long time ago, the average human jaw used to be much wider than it is now. Researchers speculate that people actually did have the space to accommodate third molars, which would have helped with chewing and tearing tough meats and fruits. After the development of forks and spoons, though, this capacity was no longer needed, and human mouths narrowed. Thus, wisdom teeth are leftover tools from a bygone age.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Third Molars Could Have Replaced Other Missing Teeth<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Dentistry has come a long way. Even just a few decades ago, tooth loss was much more common than it is now. Since wisdom teeth develop late compared to other adult teeth, researchers also think that they were meant to serve as \u201cback-up teeth.\u201d When an individual inevitably lost multiple pearly whites, the third molars would grow in to effectively replace them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Does That Mean for You?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite whatever value they may have had before, wisdom teeth don\u2019t seem to be strictly necessary nowadays. In fact, sometimes they can cause more harm than good, which is why nearly 50% of patients need to have them removed. If your third molars could damage your other teeth or become trapped below your gumline, your dentist will likely recommend an extraction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Or, if you\u2019re like the other 50% of patients and either don\u2019t have wisdom teeth or can safely grow them, your dentist will probably leave them alone instead. After all, why get an extraction if you don\u2019t need one?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Either way, you can count on your dentist to let you know what the best course of action is for your oral wellness!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">About the Author<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rossavefamilydental.com\/meet-the-dentist.html\">Dr. Xinxing Liu<\/a> had to have plenty of dental work done as a child, so she knows how important it is for dentistry to be as comfortable and convenient as possible. If you need one or more wisdom tooth removed, she\u2019ll work closely with you to identify your needs and help you have a positive experience. To <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rossavefamilydental.com\/contact.html\">contact<\/a> her office, call 469-210-7223.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Roughly half the population doesn\u2019t have enough room in their mouths to accommodate wisdom teeth. If so many people will need to extract these third molars anyway, why do you have them at all? That\u2019s a great question. Experts aren\u2019t completely sure why people grow wisdom teeth, but they have at least two theories that [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Why Do You Have Wisdom Teeth? | Ross Avenue Family Dental<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Most people don\u2019t have enough room in their mouths for wisdom teeth, so why do you have them? Find out here!\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.rossavefamilydental.com\/blog\/2025\/02\/03\/great-wisdom-tooth-mystery-why-have-them\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Why Do You Have Wisdom Teeth? | Ross Avenue Family Dental\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Most people don\u2019t have enough room in their mouths for wisdom teeth, so why do you have them? 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