4 types of teeth    milk teeth    permanent teeth

Teeth and their development.

Did you know that there are four different tooth types in the mouth, of  course you did , we all remember the agony we were in as they worked their way up to bursting up through our very sore swollen gums!!

The four tooth types

The incisors at the front of the mouth. they have a sharp biting surface and are used for cutting or shearing food into small chewable pieces. There are 8 incisors in both primary (milk teeth) and permanent dentitions.

The canines are situated at the “corners” of the dental arches. They have a sharp, pointed biting surface. Their function is to grip and tear food. There are 4 canine teeth in both primary and permanent dentitions.

The premolars have a flat biting surface.There function is to tear and crush food . They are unique to the permanentdentition which has 8 premolars.

The molars are the largest of the teeth. They have a large flat biting surface. The function of the molars is  to chew, crush and grind food. There are 8 molars in the primary dentition and 12 in the permanent dentition.

• There are 20 primary teeth
• Lower incisors are  usually the first teeth to erupt at about 6 months.
• All 20 teeth are usually in the mouth by about 2 years.
• There are 32 permanent teeth including 4 wisdom teeth.
• The first permanent teeth to erupt (usually at about 6 years) are the first permanent molars behind the last primary teeth.
• Incisors erupt between 7 and 8 years