Teeth help us to break, chew and digest the food particles, teeth play an important role in speech, giving smile and impact our overall health. Humans have two sets of teeth, one is primary and the other is permanent ones. Teeth begin developing in uterus, or during pregnancy. A set of 20 “milk teeth” will be there until the age of six. In the second set, humans develop 32 permanent teeth which consist of four different types. Each type of tooth has its own shape and performs a different work. Incisors, canines, premolars and molars are the four types of teeth.
The incisors are located in the front and the center of the mouth. Eight teeth (two sets of four teeth i.e., 4 in the upper and the 4 in the lower jaws) that have horizontal and sharp edges are used for biting and cutting of the food particles.
The canines are located on each side to the incisors. Four canine teeth are there which is also known as cuspids and one in each quadrant of the upper and lower jaw. These are the sharpest, stronger and larger and are used for ripping,tearing, shredding and piercing motions.
The premolars are also known as bicuspids and are located behind the canine teeth. Total eight premolars are there. Two premolar teeth are there behind each side of the canine teeth in the upper and lower jaw. These are used for chewing and grinding of food.
The molars a type of teeth with a flattened surface are used for final chewing, crushing and grinding food before swallowing. Most of the chewing occurs in the back of the jaw by the molar teeth. Three molars in each quadrant of the jaw, with a combined total of 12 are present in humans. The molars have numbered names according to their location: first molars are adjacent to second premolars towards the back of the mouth, with second and third molars following consecutively. The third molars are often called the wisdom teeth.
