Question:
Wisdom teeth, why do we have teeth that most likely have to be removed?
Answer:
The answer is buried deep in history…back to the Neanderthal man.
Thousands of Years Ago, the Neanderthal man ate raw meat -breakfast, lunch and dinner. Later the Cro-Magnon lived on a diet consisting of raw meat, berries and leaves, nuts and roots. Our earliest ancestors ate without utensils or fire for cooking. Teeth were used for chewing, and chewing, and chewing – breaking down food into digestible portions. The large jaw, (still seen in apes) and strong, wide molars – (including the wisdom teeth) were man’s tools for surviving. All three molars were essential and the larger jaw accommodated this with room for wisdom teeth to erupt fully into the mouth.
With fire, came cooking and began the evolution of dietary change. Fast-forward to today, not only what we eat, but food preparation has modified how we chew and use our teeth. All of the dicing, boiling, baking, and chopping involved in food preparation has made eating a pretty effortless task. Modification over the years of our jaw line – less broad and smaller; has literally pushed the wisdom teeth right out of your mouth. There is no room. How food is prepared and consumed is why our wisdom teeth now need to be extracted.
