With age comes wisdom. Specifically, wisdom teeth.
 

Your mouth goes through many changes in your lifetime. Wisdom teeth usually appearing between the ages of 17 and 21. Historically, these teeth have been called wisdom teeth because they come through at a more mature age.
When they come through correctly, healthy wisdom teeth can help you chew. It’s normal to feel a little discomfort when your wisdom teeth appear, but if you have pain, see your dentist immediately.

Wisdom teeth can lead to problems if there isn’t enough space for them to surface or they come through in the wrong position. If your dentist says your wisdom teeth are impacted, he or she means they are trapped in your jaw or under your gums.

Wisdom teeth that aren’t in the right position can allow food to become trapped. That gives cavity-causing bacteria a place to grow. Wisdom teeth that haven’t come in properly can make it difficult to floss between the wisdom teeth and the molars next to them. Wisdom teeth that have partially come through can give bacteria a place to enter the gums and create a place for infection to occur. This may also lead to pain, swelling and stiffness in your jaw.

Wisdom teeth that don’t have room to come through are thought by some to crowd or damage neighboring teeth.

A wisdom tooth that is impacted can form a cyst on or near the impacted tooth. This could damage the roots of nearby teeth or destroy the bone that supports your teeth.