The teeth play an important role in a person’s daily life.
Teeth have many uses, aside from helping you chew the food and form your words for proper speech, they also offer support to the facial tissues to provide shape to your mouth and face as well as uphold a healthy jaws with their presence.
Teeth are not only vital to your oral health as it is essential to your overall wellbeing as well. Knowing what your teeth are made of can help you understand why they are important and why they require proper care every day.
The Parts of Your Teeth
The tooth anatomy is simple. A tooth is divided into two parts: the crown and the root. The crown is the one you can see in your mouth, especially when talking and smiling. It is covered in enamel, the hardest substance in the human body. The crown is the one that sits above the gumline. The root, on the other hand, is found underneath the gumline. It is planted into the jawbone and holds the teeth in place. The root only becomes visible when the gums recede due to gum disease.
Each tooth has four kinds of tissues, and every part performs a different job. These layers include:
- Enamel
- Dentine
- Pulp
- Cementum
The enamel is the white, sturdy protective layer that covers the tooth crown and protects the more subtle inner parts of the tooth. The second protective layer is the dentine. It covers the nerve of the tooth and a sensitive tissue that comprises most of the tooth. Dentine is also a hard substance but not as hard as enamel.
Also known as the nerve, the pulp is the tooth’s soft middle where you can find the blood supply and nerve endings of the tooth. It is also the layer that provides nutrition and blood flow to the tooth. The cementum encloses the tooth root and helps support it into the bone.
Types of Teeth and their Functions
As you can observe, your teeth have different formations. That’s because each shape has distinctive tasks to do. There are four different types of teeth.
Incisors – they are your four front teeth located on the upper and lower jaw. They are designed for cutting and chopping food.
Canine – these are sharpest teeth best used for ripping and tearing foods apart. Canine teeth develop on every side of the incisors on the upper and lower jaw.
Premolars – these are also referred to as bicuspid teeth. Premolars are the teeth next to the canines. Compared to incisors and canine teeth, premolars are much bigger and wider. They are used to crush and grind food.
Molars – these are the strongest teeth with several cusps on its biting surfaces. Molars are the ones that grind and mash up the food until it can be swallowed safely.
Healthy Teeth, Healthy Smiles with your Sunshine Coast Dentist
It’s crucial to look after your teeth. Without a healthy and strong set of teeth, you are more at risk of various dental problems that require costly procedures. To help you maintain a healthy teeth and an attractive smile, consult us here at Smiles Nambour. Your trusted Sunshine Coast can provide you with remarkable oral health education so you will know how to keep your tooth anatomy for a lifetime. Also, our comprehensive range of dental treatments and procedures can address and treat many different oral health issues that can affect the health of your teeth and entire mouth. At Smiles Nambour, we always care for your smile as much as we care for your overall oral health.
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