The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-01-28
Story Of Teeth l. And Care old | By Scientist

Like other mammals, babes are born toothless. As early as the seventh month, the milk teeth begin to appear, not one after another, but in batches- the lower front incisors first, then the upper incisors, and at the end of the procession come the canines. All told, there are 20 milk teeth, five pairs in each jaw. One at a time, beginning with the sixth year, these baby teeth are shed, not pushed out by the second set, as is generally supposed, and their roots are absorbed. eEf
 Every adult is normally entitled to 32 permanent" teeth, though their permanence is not lifelong, and they are becoming more and more transient. The four wisdom teeth seldom appear until the eighteenth year or later, and frequently never appear at all. They may be listed among the 118 vanishing members of the human body, rendered useless and rudimentary by the refine ments of modern life. Soups, stews and cooked food generally have started degeneration is human teeth, and the fate which has befallen the four wis., dom teeth will probably at no far dis tant day overtake the others. Until that time dentists will be kept busy, for degenerating organs are an annoyance to the flesh. 4s
 A whole story could be written on our canine teeth. With them our an- cestQrs fought, though they were larger then than now. These are the teeth which distinguish the aearnivores from the herbivores, and which the canines and felines, walruses and wild boars have developed into tusks. Wherever you find creature with canine teeth you may be sure its investors lived on flesh and blood. Among those bone- gnawing ancestors toothache was un- known, and it is still unknown to the denizens of the junngles. Only man and domestic animals know what tooth- ache means.
 Since 1910, according to the World Almanac, the, average span of life has heightened 3.75 years for white males, and 2.71 years for white females, whereas the durability of teeth has de- creased (some authorities say) at least two years. Sir Arthur Keith exam ined 160 neolithic skulls and found only one with decayed Fteeth-he ex- amined 100 modern skulls and found only one with sound teeth. By the time man reaches the age of 62, his teeth have either been drawn, or at least should be drawn. Yet at 62, a mans life expectancy is 13.3S years, and woman's IA years. Between the fiftieth and sixtieth years, teeth trou- bles culminate. Those that remain in the mouth do not come together-oc- cluse, as the dentists call it. Mal-oc- clusion obliges munching and bolting food, which is bad for the stomach. Dr. Henry Ferris, New York orthodon- tist, once told me it is possible to tell from the feces of patient just what teeth are missing. Hence it is said :: With our teeth we dig our graves"
 Then what are we to do for teeth during the afternoon of our lives? The answer is, of course, to buy new ones. American dentists have become so ex- pert and the process so complete that very serviceable teeth are now obtain that of suit of clothes. Do not ex- form as well as good natural ones, but you will find them better than poor natural teeth and B times better than no teeth. The trouble with artificial teeth comes from the fact that the lowers" simply ride on the lower jaw (the jaw that works) without anything to hold them down--like a saddle with out girth on a bucking broncho. If well made, the uppers need never cause trouble, save for the first few days when ones mouth feels full of metal, because the plate adheres to the palate and holds them in place, but the lowers-the least said about the way they jump around the better
 Care of the teeth, which should be- gin with childhood, prolongs their life, but no amount of care or dentistry can render 'bad" tooth serviceable. Worse than useless, its socket is noth- ing less than small poison pot, where in a half dozen diseases are being brewed. Save several hundred dollars and your health by having loose teeth pulled promptly. Painless methods of extraction have been evolved, and "pullers' parlors" are no longer tor ture chambers. Whenever any of the degenerating members. of the body, such as teeth and the appendix, be- come diseased, it seldom pays to spend much money in efforts to cure them. One might as well try to cure old age,
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