Picture: Deciduous teeth of İhsan Efe Özbaylar
The Development: Information about our teeth and surrounding tissues (3/4) - click for the next
Development of teeth
In humans, the first set (the baby, milk, primary or deciduous
teeth) normally starts to appear at about six months of age, although
some babies are born with one or more visible teeth, known as neonatal
teeth. In an embryo, tooth development begins after the 6th and 7th
week, although the mouth structure begins to be appearing on 3rd week.
Milk (deciduous) teeth
Normal
tooth eruption at about six months is known as teething and can be
painful. When complete they will be 10 in each row, in total 20.
Milk incisors, canines and molars are smaller than the adult
(permanent) teeth.
The deciduous teeth will remain until the age of six. As the child grows, permanent teeth will start to develop. The
erupting permanent teeth causes root resorption, where the permanent
teeth push down on the roots of the deciduous teeth causing the roots
to be dissolved and become absorbed by the forming permanent teeth.
When the root of the deciduous teeth completely melt, and only the
crown part left, it will fall off by itself.
Eruption times
First
tooth will erupt about 6 months old and the last wisdom teeth about
18-20. This means that the tooth development is about 20 years
process. Milk tooth usually finishes their development by the age of 3.5 years old. Permanent teeth will start growing around 6 yo.
By age twelve there usually are only permanent teeth remaining.
Nevertheless, there might be delays about 1-1½ years delay in the tooth
development.