Your Wisdom Tooth

They say with age comes wisdom. Whoever came up with that saying may have been looking at a tooth coming out from a mature person’s gum. 

If you are wondering why it is named wisdom tooth, it is because it comes at an age wherein a person is supposed to have more knowledge since they are older. It may not be true on the knowledge part but these teeth do come out between the ages of 17 to 25 years. 

These are your third molars and as long as their growth is normal, there is nothing to worry about. However, if not, you may need to say goodbye to them as soon as they come out. 

Will I Know If They Are Coming Out?

Of course, you will know! There are symptoms that you will be experiencing that will not be easy to ignore such as:

• Gum Irritation- Swelling is a common sign though it may not be very obvious at first. But usually, the swelling and irritation happen around the area where the second molar is.
• Redness- When you feel irritation and swelling, you may check it and you may find it a red or darker shade of pink. That is because the teeth are slowly pushing their way up.
• Pain- This is something you will not be able to ignore. It will begin as a tiny pinch which may escalate to throbbing pain especially if it has problems. 
• White Thingamajig- If you start seeing white specks at the back part of your mouth where your molars are, this is actually your wisdom tooth starting to make its entrance. It is the top of the brand new pearly white trying to break free from the gum line. 

Is There A Reason To Worry?

In a way, there is, because emerging wisdom teeth can lead to a lot of problems. If there is not enough room for it to grow or they start at the wrong position, the dentist may need to check how greatly impacted it is. 

This is not the same case for everyone but in totality, wisdom teeth removal is called for if you are already going through the following:

• Pain
• Damage on the teeth near it
• Causing gum disease
• Infection

Your dentist will have to run an X-ray test to find out if the tooth is impacted. And if it is, they would also have to see how great the damage is and if it can still be saved. From there, they would be giving out their recommendation, whether to remove or not. 

When Do You Say Goodbye?

Your teeth’s position is the most important factor. While it can help the other two mortars grind the food that you eat, it can also cause discomfort when it does not have enough room to grow. This is why you need to give your dentist a visit if the symptoms start to manifest. If the tooth/teeth show they’re impacted, something needs to be done since they are trapped under your gums or jaw. 

• If the dentist says it has to go, the possibilities are:
• It does not have enough room for it to come through and it may crowd and damage the teeth next to it.
• It can also cause a cyst to form and can cause more discomfort.
• It can also destroy the roots of all the other teeth near it or worst, damage the bone supporting the teeth.
• If the wisdom tooth does not have enough room to come out, flossing and cleaning it will be difficult to do. Bacteria will have room to hide and cause cavities to grow. 
• If the wisdom tooth can only come out partially, that won’t be healthy too. Bacteria can get inside and damage the tooth from within. Pain, stiffness of the jaw, and even swelling will be experienced. 

Anything Else To Look After When Having a Wisdom Tooth

The pain as it is coming out is a given fact but if it is perfectly healthy and nothing is wrong with its growth, pain should subside once it is thoroughly out. However, if this is an impacted tooth and it is infected, the following may happen:

• Bleeding gums
• Inflamed jaw
• Swollen gums
• Unfavorable taste lingering in your mouth
• Bad Breath
• Pain when opening your mouth

What Should You Do

A visit to your dentist is the best decision to make. If there is something wrong with your wisdom tooth, necessary action will be taken. If there is a way to save it, they are the best people to know. Do not wait for the worse to happen. Some resort to self-medication if they start feeling pain. This is not the right way to deal with it. Besides, if you regularly visit your doctor, they’d be monitoring its growth and should know what to do with it already.