The structure of our set of teeth
Our teeth are made of a hard, bone-like substance. They are held by small sockets in our upper and lower jawbones called dental alveoli. Strong fibers anchor them in place. The upper and lower sets of teeth form two arches. When you close your mouth and bite, these two arches typically fit together with a slight overlap.
A full set of adult teeth includes 16 upper teeth and 16 lower teeth at the most. Each row has:
- 4 incisors in the middle
- 2 canine teeth next to the incisors; 1 to the left and 1 to the right
- 10 molars (back teeth); 5 on each side