Richard Thain, DDS
I have been asked countless times by patients over a period of four decades, “Why do we have wisdom teeth when they often have to be extracted?”
For more than the first half of my career, I was only able to mumble some sort of inadequate answer. Recent research has illuminated this question, and I’m pleased to be able to share a clearer explanation today.
Here are some interesting items that Critical Links newsletter readers may enjoy. The abstract provides a good summary. Those of you who may be interested in biological evolution in general—and human evolution more specifically— will enjoy sinking your teeth into the detailed article.
Short abstract from Nature magazine: Impact of meat and Lower Palaeolithic food processing techniques on chewing in humans
Article: A Biologist Explains Why Humans Have Wisdom Teeth. Hint: We Evolved Too Fast For Our Own Jaws
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Jan Steen, The Tooth-Puller (1651). Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.
