A human tooth has several characteristics that make it stand out, and one of them is the fact that we only have two sets of teeth in our lives, compared to other mammals that may have as many as six or seven sets. The number of teeth in each set and their size differ from individual to individual, but there are some basic facts you should know about your dental teeth numbers. Let’s see how many teeth you have!
Know your basic dental structure
Dental teeth numbers are categorized into four groups: incisors, canines, premolars, and molars. Incisors make up eight in number, two on each side of your mouth (four top and four bottoms). They’re primarily used for biting or cutting food. Next are canines or cuspids, which are also called eye teeth; they’re used for tearing meat or food that’s already been cut.
Then come premolars or bicuspids—they assist in crushing and grinding food when we chew it. Finally, there are molars—also known as grinders—which give us strong chewing capability. Molars consist of 12 teeth in total, six on top and six on the bottom. The first three teeth from both sides are called primary molars because they’re replaced by permanent ones later on.
You’ll know these primary teeth by their rounded shape and large size compared to other types of teeth. The second set is called permanent molars because they’re not replaced by any other type of tooth later on; these are characterized by a flat shape with smaller roots than primary ones. Permanent premolars will appear between ages 10-12 years old, while permanent canines will show up between ages 13-15 years old.
Canine teeth
There are 4 canine teeth (2 on top, 2 on bottom). If you ever need to know what they’re called, they’re also referred to as cuspids. In between each canine tooth is a small gap called a diastema that helps create space for other teeth and keeps your mouth from getting crowded. They are often used to identify people based on their dental records. Also known as eye teeth because of their light color, which stands out when compared with darker chewing teeth. They emerge when we are about 6 months old and continue to grow until about age 21; after that, we call them wisdom teeth.
Molar tooth
Although technically, a molar is any of your chewing teeth, a molar tooth refers to your largest and strongest teeth. If you compare them side by side, it’s easy to see that there’s more space in between a molar tooth than your other teeth. Molars are also wider than canines or incisors and tend to be quite large overall.
Each person only has two of these—they sit on either side of your mouth at the back. Most people have 12 total teeth, but some may have up to 20! The number of teeth you have depends on how old you are. For example, children often start with 20 baby teeth before losing their primary teeth as they grow into adulthood. The rest will fall out naturally over time and eventually give way to new adult teeth (or permanent teeth).
Premolar teeth
We’ve got eight premolars. Most of them are visible in our mouth, but two (the first and second premolars) are hidden behind our canines. The fourth premolar is actually a wisdom tooth and usually appears in people ages 25-35. If it doesn’t appear by then, it may not ever emerge from your gums. That’s why we suggest scheduling an appointment with an Orthodontic for a full oral exam once every six months or so to make sure there aren’t any emerging teeth that aren’t accounted for on your tooth chart numbered. It could save you some major dental bills down the road!
Incisor tooth
The incisor tooth or simply incisor is one of the four types of functional teeth (the others being canines, premolars, and molars) that occur in most mammals. Incisors are used to bite off food into manageable pieces that can be digested by teeth at other positions in the jaw.
There are two pairs of incisors: upper and lower. The upper and lower central incisors are referred to as central because they are located in between two other types of teeth: canine teeth (cuspid or cuspid) in front and premolar teeth behind; both their English and Latin names reflect these facts. In most cases, three pairs of incisors develop before birth, with some exceptions. One pair usually develops later on during childhood.
Why it’s good to know the number of your dental
To understand why it’s important to know your dental teeth number, it is first necessary to understand what a tooth is. Your teeth are made up of four different components: enamel, dentin, cementum, and pulp. Enamel covers the crown of your tooth and protects against abrasion and acid erosion. Dentin provides strength for chewing and biting by hardening with age.
Cementum makes up part of your tooth root or socket (alveolar bone). Pulp houses nerves that send signals to your brain during sensation or tasting food. It also produces blood cells that help repair tooth damage. Each tooth has two roots, which connect it to your jawbone and gums. In total, there are 32 teeth in each mouth: eight incisors (four on top and four on bottom), 12 premolars (six on top and six on bottom), and eight molars (four on top and four on bottom) plus two wisdom teeth.
A dental anatomy chart
Dental anatomy is pretty simple and easy to remember if you start from your central incisors moving clockwise around your mouth. The number of teeth in each quadrant is as follows: • Upper right (UR): 8 • upper left (UL): 8 • Lower right (LR): 8 • Lower left (LL): 8 Note that some people are missing their wisdom teeth and may only have six molars.
But we’ll discuss that later. That’s also true for younger children who haven’t erupted all of their permanent teeth yet. But let’s focus on adults first! Yes, even though most dental anatomy charts just show eight teeth in each quadrant, a full set of adult teeth has 32 — 16 per quadrant!
