We finally know why wisdom teeth emerge so late

The pace of our lives are closely intertwined with so many things: hormonal changes, literal growing pains, and (of course) dental development. Most of us don’t remember teething, but plenty recall having our wisdom teeth erupt and, if you live in a place that regularly removes them, getting them yanked out of your jaw. It’s just one dental milestone and one of three molar milestones, but until recently we had no idea why wisdom teeth emerged so late in life.

A new study in Science Advances suggests a reason: our jaws are simply late bloomers.

“It turns out that…