Your dentist gives each tooth a number – and here’s what they could mean for your health
If you hear lots of ones, twos and threes you can relax, but fours or higher could be a sign of bone loss or periodontal disease
NO ONE likes the dentist. Fact.
You can't talk, most of the time you are dribbling like a fool, and if it's a particularly long procedure the jaw ache can be agonising.
But most of all, we don't like the dentist because we don't understand the jargon, the procedures and why a root canal is classed as "therapy" when it is anything but cathartic.
Now we can demystify one of the most common practices you've heard but probably not understood - the counting.
Everyone will have experienced this during a check-up: you sit in the chair, tip back into the dentist's lap and have your teeth numbered.
There are two reasons for this.
1=Central incisor
2=Lateral incisor
3=Canine
4=first premolar
5=Second premolar
6=First molar
7=Second molar
8=Third molar or wisdom tooth
"Each tooth has six areas that are measured, that is why there are so many numbers.
Each number is actually a millimetre measurement, read off of the instrument that we are using."
According to Laura numbers one to three are generally normal and healthy, but when you start to get above four there is a larger than normal "pocket" between your gum and your tooth, which could be a sign of health problems.
"If it has been a while since you have had a cleaning, a four can mean there is some inflammation of the gums making the measurement larger.
But it can also signal the beginning of bone loss or periodontal disease around a tooth.
As we get to higher numbers on a periodontal chart, into the fives and sixes, it is important to look at what is happening, whether it be periodontal disease, a cracked tooth, or gum loss."
The British Society of Periodontology estimates that half the population suffer from periodontal disease - more commonly known as gum disease - with 10 per cent suffering it in its most severe form.
The disease can be caused by "poor oral hygiene, tobacco use, diabetes, genetics, poor nutrition and stress" leading to tooth loss, if it is not treated in the early stages.
Another thing dentists are looking for is whether your gums bleed during the exam, as this can be another sign of gum disease.
However, Laura says smoking can often mask the bleeding and consequently the health of your gums.
If you are wondering how serious this all is (it's only teeth after all), the World Health Organisation has identified periodontal disease as the sixth most prevalent disease affecting mankind.
Book that check-up!
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