7 Fun Facts About Your Teeth That Will Make You Smile

We all know that our teeth help us chew and speak; they also make us look charming and attractive by beautifying our smiles. But how much do we actually know about our teeth? Here are 7 interesting facts about your teeth that are bound to make you smile!

1) Teeth Start to Develop Before Babies are Born

Did you know that the crowns of baby teeth are already present inside the gums when a baby is born? According to the American Dental Association, the blueprint of the teeth starts to form even before babies arrive in this world. However, the first milk tooth only becomes visible when a child is 3-6 months old. What’s more interesting is that the crowns of permanent teeth are also present at birth. However, permanent teeth only start to appear once the milk teeth begin to fall off – around the age of 6.

2) Your Teeth are your Identity

Whether it’s your 20 milk teeth or the 32 permanent ones, no two teeth are identical – not even your own teeth. In fact, every individual in this world has a unique set of teeth. That is why law enforcement and forensic agencies use dental records to identify suspects, criminals, and deceased people – because your teeth are as unique as your fingerprints.

3) The Condition of your Teeth Can Tell A Lot About Yourself

Did you know that dentists and scientists can tell a lot about your personality, lifestyle, and health status by looking at your teeth? Our teeth can reveal vital information such as our age, our dietary and oral hygiene habits, and which part of the Earth we belong to. So, if you want to enjoy a set of pearly white teeth, you should eat a tooth-friendly diet and ensure optimal oral hygiene. More importantly, learning the correct method of brushing and flossing can go a long way in ensuring good oral and physical health. Here are 5 common mistakes we often make while brushing our teeth.

4) How We Brush our Teeth Impacts the Environment

You may not believe it, but you can actually play your part in preserving nature and preventing damage to the environment by using Eco-friendly oral hygiene products. How? For example, by buying organic, nature-based toothpaste and oral hygiene products like bamboo toothbrushes, organic mouth rinses, and biodegradable dental floss, you will actually be minimizing the use of non-degradable oral hygiene care products that harm the environment and generate a significant carbon footprint.

Here is another benefit of using natural oral hygiene products – safety. We often come across people who are allergic to different ingredients of toothpaste, mouth rinses, and even the materials used for dental treatment. However, organic dental care products, made from natural products, are absolutely safe and carry no risk of adverse effects; you don’t have to worry about allergic reactions or toxicity. So, it is always a good idea to use nature-based dental products – to maintain good oral hygiene – and to avoid situations that require an emergency dental clinic visit.

5) Cleaning Between Your Teeth is Just As Important as Cleaning the Visible Surfaces

While brushing, it is very easy to clean the visible surfaces of our teeth. However, ensuring optimal cleaning around interdental spaces is equally essential – as failure to do so may result in various complications such as teeth cavities and periodontal inflammation. That is why the ADA recommends using dental floss daily, in addition to brushing, to prevent food impaction and bacterial growth in the hard-to-reach interdental spaces.

6) Gifts From the Tooth Fairy

Here is another interesting fact! Did you know that the value of the gifts given by the tooth fairy has increased over the years? According to the American Dental Association, the average gift from the tooth fairy in 1950 was just 25 cents. Today, kids get an average of $2 per tooth from the tooth fairy as a gift.

7) Our Teeth are Alive!

Our teeth, like our bones, are alive; they have their own blood and nerve supply. However, unlike other tissues and organs in our body, teeth do not possess the potential to regenerate. That is why, when a part of a tooth is lost either due to decay or trauma, it cannot regrow. Instead, your dentist will place a suitable filling material over the damaged tooth to restore its aesthetics and function. Also, our teeth can die too! If the pulp tissue inside the tooth – which contains the nerves and blood vessels – gets infected irreversibly, your dentist will perform a procedure called root canal treatment to remove the inflamed tissues. After a root canal procedure, a tooth officially becomes dead. Besides, our teeth can also die following an accidental injury.

Healthy and pearly white teeth help us maintain optimal oral and physical health and give us a beautiful smile. So, while we’re chewing on these interesting facts about the teeth, let us vow to take good care of our oral health through regular brushing and flossing, using environment-friendly, natural dental products, and visiting the dentist regularly. This is the secret to enjoying a picture-perfect, Hollywood smile!

Author bio

Dr. Mehmood Asghar currently works as an Assistant Professor in Dental Biomaterials at the National University of Medical Sciences, Pakistan. Besides being an educator, he is also pursuing a Ph.D. in Dental Biomaterials, and works as a dentist as well. Apart from his professional activities, Dr. Asghar loves reading, writing, and working out.