Why Big Brains and Cutlery Have Left You with No Room for Wisdom (Teeth)

Prehistoric man must have lived a difficult life indeed. No Facebook, no TV, no fancy new recipes to try out inspired by last night’s Masterchef. Not even a barbie to throw a few T-Rex snags on!

So that left our early cousins basically wandering around eating raw meat, roots and leaves and no doubt looking for a way to make life easier.

Early man needed some pretty heavy duty chompers to cope with this diet and the third molars (wisdom teeth) were vital in being able to manage eating these foods.

wisdom-teeth.jpg



So why are Wisdom Teeth problematic for so many of us now??

Over 200,000 years ago, the early human brain started to grow at a rapid pace, changing the shape of the skull and leaving a lot less room for teeth. With their new smarts and the introduction of agriculture, people began to eat softer more palatable foods, basically removing the need for wisdom teeth to exist at all.

So when you’re sitting in the dentist chair waiting for the anaesthetic to kick in before you have all 4 wisdom teeth extracted, you can thank your smashed avo on sourdough for putting your wisdom teeth out of a job.

‘85% of people will need one or more of their wisdom teeth removed at some stage in their lifetime, are you one of them??’


Due to lack of room in the jaw, the position of wisdom teeth can cause a whole range of potentially problematic and painful conditions.

  • Wisdom teeth that haven’t been able to fully erupt from the gum can cause painful localised gum infections.

  • Impacted or un-erupted wisdom teeth can cause damage to the tooth in front or the surrounding jawbone.

  • Wisdom teeth may negatively impact the development of other teeth.


The Wisdom of Doing Nothing

Often as not, wisdom teeth in fact are able to be left exactly as they are without causing any long term problems. So how will you ever know whether you need to save up for some likely expensive, possibly complicated, oral surgery to remove your wisdom teeth? Or can you invest that money on your next overseas holiday instead and rest safe in the knowledge that your little pearls of wisdom can stay exactly where they are?

There is only one tried and true way to find out for sure whether or not you’ll need your wisdom teeth out. Get the crystal ball out, wave your wand over it and ask it to show you the phone number for your local dentist.

There are almost as many reasons to have your wisdom teeth extracted or not as there are Smiths in the Yellow Pages. Your dentist will be familiar with all of these and will be able to offer you sound professional advice on where you stand with your wisdom teeth.

  • Seeking professional advice early can result in a much easier and less painful procedure if your wisdom teeth do need to be removed.

  • Early intervention also allows for better treatment planning and outcomes for other teeth that may be involved.

  • If early extraction is required, you can avoid potentially dangerous infections or painful emergency intervention.


There are so many different opinions regarding whether or not wisdom teeth should be extracted and why- but don’t listen to the hype! Trust your dentist who will work towards the best outcomes for you personally.

There are a multitude of reasons why some or all of your wisdom teeth may need to be removed, and just as many reasons as to why they may be better left as they are. Find out today where you stand, get wise and give us a call (02 6921 5799) or CLICK HERE to book an appointment.



Kimberley Hayllar