HEALTH

When you have dental X-rays taken as a teen, your dentist should be able to see the buds of your wisdom teeth. Usually they don’t come in fully until you’re in your late teens or early 20s—I had mine out when I was 21. Some people’s wisdom teeth come in perfectly straight, but many others have to have theirs removed because they are due to grow in crooked, which can cause serious problems.

Thanks to advances in technology, dentists are starting to remove wisdom teeth when their patients are younger. The older you get, the harder it becomes to take these suckers out and the greater the chance will be that they will affect your tooth alignment and your bite.

While having them removed counts as surgery, it’s not a huge deal. The procedure itself should only take an hour or two, and you’ll be put under—probably using conscious sedation—so you won’t feel or remember a thing. The recovery time is one to two weeks. For the first few days, your cheeks will probably be puffy and sore, and you won’t be able to chew solid food well or at all, so get ready for a liquid—re: ice cream and pudding!—diet. If you experience pain, you’ll have some prescription meds to take, so don’t worry. Sure, getting your wisdom teeth removed isn’t a picnic, but it’s certainly not torture, either. You’ll be fine!

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