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Wisdom tooth extraction is a multibillion-dollar industry driven by myths that continue to be spread by the conventional dental profession for immense profit.
Over Spring Break during my senior year in college, I endured wisdom tooth extraction like just about everyone else I knew my age. To top it off, the dentist knocked me out for the procedure instead of using a simple local anesthetic plus laughing gas.
Needless to say, I spent most of my vacation on the living room couch with my mouth loaded with gauze! Recovery from the anesthesia caused even more complications.
Prior to surgery, were my wisdom teeth infected or painful in any way?
No.
Were they causing any sort of problems for me whatsoever?
No.
Then why in the world did I have them out you might ask?
Good question!
As it turns out, over two-thirds of cases of wisdom tooth extraction are completely unnecessary says Dr. Jay Friedman DDS in a study published in the American Journal of Public Health.
Of the approximately 5 million people who endure wisdom tooth extraction each year, 11,000 suffer what’s called “permanent paresthesia” which is a fancy name for numbness of the lip, tongue, and cheek resulting from nerve damage during the surgery.
The problem is, wisdom tooth extraction is quite the little oil well of profit for dentists with the costs of such surgeries topping 3 billion US$ each and every year.
Sounds like the standard practice of wisdom tooth extraction is a bit like “finding and filling” cavities that don’t exist, doesn’t it?
Ah, yes. There’s the rub.
According to Dr. Friedman:
Third-molar surgery is a multibillion-dollar industry that generates significant income for the dental profession, particularly oral and maxillofacial surgeons. It is driven by misinformation and myths that have been exposed before but that continue to be promulgated by the profession.
Dr. Friedman goes on to dismantle in very compelling fashion the 5 myths of wisdom tooth extraction.
Myth #1: Most Wisdom Teeth Cause Problems
The truth is that only 12% of wisdom teeth actually cause an acute issue somewhere down the road that requires the attention of a dentist to resolve.
This is about the same rate as appendicitis, but people do not routinely and preventively have their appendix removed like what happens with wisdom teeth!
Myth #2: Early Wisdom Tooth Extraction is Less Traumatic
The American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons recommends the extraction of all 4 wisdom teeth by early adulthood before the roots are fully formed to minimize any chance of infection and pain.
The truth is that this early removal of wisdom teeth is actually much more traumatic than a wait and see approach which leaves asymptomatic wisdom teeth in place and only removes them if pathology develops in the future.
Further, complications from wisdom tooth extraction which include dry socket, secondary infection, and paresthesia (numbness of the lip, tongue, and cheek) are less likely to occur in an older patient than an adolescent.
Myth #3: Erupting Wisdom Teeth Crowd Anterior Teeth
Dr. Friedman writes that it is simply not possible for wisdom teeth to crowd 14 other teeth with firm vertical roots.
There is simply not enough force to do so and multiple studies support this fact.
Myth #4: Risk of Problems Increases With Age
A study of 1756 people who kept their wisdom teeth for an average of 27 years found that less than 1% experienced any cyst formation.
There is zero evidence to support the unsubstantiated claim by the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons which states that problems with impacted wisdom teeth increase with age.
Myth #5: Risk of Harm is Small
The list of potential complications from wisdom tooth extraction is long.
- Pain
- Swelling
- Trismus (lockjaw)
- Hemorrhage
- Alveolar osteitis (dry socket)
- Periodontal damage
- Soft-tissue infection
- Injury to temporomandibular joint
- Malaise
- Temporary paresthesia (numbness of the lips, tongue, and cheek)
- Permanent paresthesia
- Fracture of adjacent teeth
- Fracture of the mandible
- Fracture of the maxilla
- Sinus exposure or infection
- Anesthetic complications
Even in cases where there are absolutely no complications whatsoever, wisdom tooth extraction requires 3 days of discomfort and disability while the patient recovers from surgery.
Given that no more than 12% of wisdom teeth ever cause any problems whatsoever at any point down the road, the risk of removal seems great in comparison.
Skip The Surgery!
So, if your dentist tells you or your child that it’s time for those wisdom teeth to come out when they aren’t causing any trouble at all, just politely smile, say “uh, no thanks”, and go home.
You just saved yourself a rather large chunk of change my friend.
Even in cases where you must remove the wisdom teeth, there is no need for antibiotics in most cases. A biological dentist has natural approaches to protect a patient from infection without destruction of the gut with meds.
Which Dentists Won’t Pressure You To Remove Wisdom Teeth?
If you are getting pressured to remove your child’s wisdom teeth, know that a biological dentist does not do this!
I get many requests about who I recommend as a truly holistic, biological dentist who understands the value to long-term health of the wisdom teeth and WON’T take them out unless absolutely necessary.
I recommend Dr. Carlo Litano of Natural-Smiles.com – (727) 300-0044.
He sees young children as well as adults and does phone consultations to help guide those who don’t live near his office. Be sure to tell Dr. Litano that Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist sent you and get 10% off your first visit!
Reference
American Journal of Public Health, Prophylactic Extraction of Third Molars: A Public Health Hazard, Jay Friedman DDS
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If I’m in pain I schedule an appointment but we also eat whole foods, pastures meats and lots of veggies. Sugar/flour binds with minerals and nutrients to aid digestion. If the diet is lacking in these it pulls it from existing tissues and bone (teeth). Weston A. Price DDS
Cavities in any teeth are a sign to increase K2 (grassfed butter, fermented cod liver oil, etc.) dramatically & reduce grains & sugars extremely, stat. Doing that stopped the cavities in every member of my family immediately. No pain, no progression for five years.
I’m so glad I didn’t have mine removed! 3 of the 4 are all the way in and my current dentist says they’re doing great great. Normally they recommend having them removed to prevent possible future problems. I’d been told to do this many times before but didn’t thankfully.
My oldest daughter’s dental x-rays shows that she doesn’t even have wisdom teeth. I thought that was strange. I had mine out when I was 16 as a standard procedure, but my husband never did have his out. I’m glad that I read this. I will watch to see if my other kids have them and not instantly jump to have them removed unnecessarily.
My husband still has his at 24 and every time he goes to the dentist they try to have him make an appointment to have them out but we haven’t had any issues whatsoever. Not planning to have them removed unless something suddenly comes up! I had mine out and all were impacted in my tiny little mouth but I would have loved to have gone without my bruised cheeks for two weeks afterwards!
What about when they get cavities (I’m in my mid-30s)… are they worth filling?
I wish I had never had mine taken out. I was 16. No symptoms. I remember them using the argument that we’d spent so many years and so much money straightening my teeth with braces, it’d be a shame to ruin it with the wisdom teeth crowding the others out. Ugh. I had a HORRIBLE recovery, I couldn’t eat solid food for more than a week, I was in so much pain. I could barely even open my mouth to speak for several days after! And my face swelled up like a chipmunk and was black and blue all over. It was one of the most miserable experiences of my life.
Mine had roots imbedded in my jaw bone. They HAD to come out. The pain was unbearable!!
I’m 31 and I did not have my wisdom teeth removed. However, now all four of them have cavities that I’m actively working on trying to heal.
When my older son was 18 his orthodondist told him he should have his wisdom teeth removed but his dentist at the time recommended not to do it because he judged that there was enough room and that those teeth could come in handy some day in the future as strong posts for other missing teeth. We didn’t do it and he is just fine. My younger son 22 also kept his wisdom teeth even though he keeps getting pressured into having them removed. I kept mine and they are the healthiest 33 year old teeth I have in my mouth.