The agreed definition of a tooth

is a highly mineralised unit within the mouth.

Thirty-two highly mineralised units, eight incisors, four canines,

eight premolars and eight molars.

Plus four wisdom teeth which don't tend to make themselves known

until about five years after the rest of the adult set are in place,

because of course these 32 teeth are your second set.

An average baby is born with both milk and adult teeth

already in their head.

A seven-year-old Indian boy was recently found to have 526 teeth

inside his mouth.

But let's stick to the more common number. 20 milk teeth, 32 adult,

a total of 52.

Fifty-two teeth, rarely visible when born but they're all there,

in the skull.

Waiting...

waiting...

to erupt!

Thank goodness we can't remember teething. Consider if you will the

brutality of these shards of enamel ripping through innocent gums.

No wonder babies cry.

Reward for this discomforting experience comes when that first set

of baby teeth start to fall out, ready for the tooth fairy.

The first recording of such a transaction with a fee being paid

for a child's lost tooth is in 13th Century Norse culture.

Vikings going into battle would wear necklaces

made up of children's teeth.

Not because it presumably looked utterly terrifying,

but because they were considered lucky.

In the UK, the most common price paid for a tooth is £1,

although 11% of children apparently sleep soundly

with a crisp fiver under their pillow - far less lumpy than a coin.

Children in the Middle Ages were sometimes instructed to burn

their baby teeth, or risk spending the afterlife searching for them...

With such historical scaremongering surrounding teeth, it is perhaps

easier to understand why so many people now have a fear of dentists.

Eighty-four per cent of all adults in the UK have at least one filling

and the average Brit has seven.

Of course fillings are just one dental procedure,

your teeth may also be cleaned, flossed, capped or crowned,

bonded, braced, sealed, whitened or extracted.

But just remember, that going to the dentist today is far less precarious

than it used to be.

Before dentistry found acceptance as a medical profession,

extraction was the domain of barbers and blacksmiths.

Essentially, anyone with access to sharp tools or heavy pliers.

As 19th Century dentists like Horace Wells and William Morton

struggled to be considered professionals rather than tradesman,

public demonstrations of painless tooth extractions became

more and more commonplace.

Some using nitrous oxide ended in a volunteer screaming in agony,

but by 1846, dentistry had finally cracked anaesthesia.

People attempt to please their dentists by brushing their teeth,

a practice that has evolved from twigs and leaves, into a global

toothpaste industry worth billions.

Human teeth are now primarily used for biting off strips of sticky tape.

But these highly mineralised rocks are also responsible for crushing,

slicing and making manageable almost every meal or snack

you'll ever enjoy.

But we also use them to reflect our mood to others,

be that a welcoming smile or an aggressive snarl.

Contemporary teeth can be adorned with jewelled grilles

or filtered to perfection on Instagram,

but to think of the all-white uniform smile as perfect

is a relatively recent obsession.

Having a varied set of teeth is what allowed humans to survive

and flourish across the globe.

Our teeth have evolved to incorporate varying diets and environments,

frankly, we're lucky to have them.

Alligator teeth are considered particularly lucky.

But if you're seeking dental inspiration, look no further than...

sharks.

Unlike us, sharks can afford to loose a few teeth as they're able

to regenerate and replace them almost continuously.

One great white shark can produce tens of thousands of teeth

in their lifetime, which makes our 52 seem relatively...

toothless.