Did you know that pearly whites contain two basic parts: the visible crown and the underlying root? The crowns of chompers help you to grind food for digestion, and the roots anchor the teeth securely in position in your oral cavity. Each tooth in your mouth is comprised of several layers of oral tissue, including enamel, dentin and cementum tissues.
Enamel. Enamel is the outermost, visible surface substance covering the crown. This layer is very solid so that it can shield the tissues inside the tooth, but if you don’t brush and floss regularly, bacterial acids in plaque can eat away this layer.
Dentin. Dentin is a tissue layer that appears like bone, but since it’s not as hard as the enamel tissue, it suffers from higher wear down rates once the enamel layer has been breached.
Cementum. Cementum tissue is like a special cement for your teeth. Cementum binds the root of your tooth to bone, keeping your tooth firmly seated. Cementum is usually covered by the gums, so it’s important to take good care of your gums if you want this adhesive layer of your chompers to remain intact — and if you want to keep your teeth in your mouth!
Pulp. The nerve-filled, vessel-filled soft-tissue center of your pearly whites is defined as the pulp. This layer is sensitive, so it’s important that you maintain the strength of the above layers to keep your pearly whites free from hurt and decay.
Teeth are incredible. If you’d like to retain yours, please give Dr. Charles W. Hobart II and the team at First Dental of Bluffton in Bluffton, South Carolina, a call now at 843-757-2828 to pencil in your next visit.