By their early teens, your child should have 28 permanent teeth. The four wisdom teeth, also known as the third molars, will emerge later on, bringing the total to 32. According to the ADA, your child’s – or should we say young adult’s – wisdom teeth will start to come through in their late teens or early 20s.
Sometimes, the wisdom teeth don’t emerge fully through the gum line, and are referred to as “impacted”. This can happen if the teeth are crowded or the jaw is small, and the teeth don’t have enough room to fully break through. This can cause no problems for some people, but others might experience pain or discomfort. As the impacted part of the tooth is difficult to keep clean, it can also lead to frequent infections or tooth decay. Be sure your child regularly sees your dentist so they can properly assess if your child needs their wisdom teeth removed. If so, plan to coddle them for a few days as they'll need to be off their feet and in bed recovering.