Tooth facts

At Mouth Matters, teeth are our passion and we just find them so interesting that we thought it would be fun to share some little-known facts with you.

Did you know that teeth begin to form before you are even born? Although you can’t see newborn babies’ milk teeth straight away, these form while the baby is in the womb. So although these teeth don’t come through until the age of around 6-12 months, they are actually already there even though they aren’t immediately visible!

Many people believe that our bones are the hardest part of the body but the truth is the tooth enamel is the strongest substance. This is the top surface of the tooth and it contains a high percentage of minerals, the main one is called hydroxyapetite. Tooth enamel does not contain any living cells and this means that it cannot regenerate, so if it becomes damaged it cannot repair itself in the way that other parts of the body can. Understanding this fact is very important because it highlights why we need to look after our teeth; simply put, they don’t grow back so we need to care for the ones we have!

Much like our fingerprints, no two sets of teeth are the same. Even if two people have had the same dental treatment to make their teeth perfectly straight and white, each set is still completely unique to the individual. It’s not just part of a storyline when you see characters being identified by their dental records on film and TV crime scenes, this happens in real life! Police forensic teams can use dental records as identification in the same way as fingerprints.

We know plenty more facts about teeth so if you’d like to know more just make an appointment by calling 01244 343353 and speaking to our friendly reception team!

Back to blog index