Because while baby teeth stop growing as soon as they appear in the mouth, the bones that support them continue to grow. “At 2 years old, the child’s first set of teeth is already complete, with 20 teeth. But, as the bones continue to develop, it is necessary to change the smaller teeth for larger and proportional ones”, says orthodontist Carlos Henrique Guimarães Jr., from the Orthodontics Society of the Federal District. Around the age of 6, after the first pair of permanent teeth (molars) are born, the milk teeth begin to be replaced. In this process, the root of the perms starts to absorb the milk ones. Trapped only by the gum, children’s teeth are soft until they fall out. At that age, as the arcade is much larger, there is room for other teeth that did not exist in the first dentition. At around 17 years of age, the last two pairs are born, the wisdom teeth, which make up 32 permanent, larger and stronger teeth.
In addition to being essential in the first stage of life, milk teeth influence all the dentition that comes later. “If they fall before their time, the permanent ones can even be born out of place, disturbing the child’s bite. That’s why it’s very important to take good care of the first set of teeth”, says Carlos Henrique.