Understanding the Parts of a Tooth

The importance of your teeth is certainly obvious. Beyond the role of breaking food down into digestible pieces, your teeth provide the structure for your smile. Confident smiles can affect job performance, relationships, and general life quality. The part of a tooth that people can see when you talk or smile is called the crown. However, there’s plenty going on below the gumline, in your dental pulp.

About Tooth Enamel

Can you believe that the second hardest material on earth is inside your mouth? Diamonds are the only substance on earth that is a harder compound than enamel. Tooth enamel covers the crowns of your teeth and is designed to protect everything underneath it. The strong barrier of protective enamel may be strong, but it is not infallible. Anyone can fall victim to chips and cracks from injuries or chewing objects which are too hard, such as ice cubes. Food and beverages which produce acid can also damage tooth enamel if you allows plaque to build on the surfaces of your teeth.

About Dentin

Mostly comprised of minerals, the dentin part of your teeth creates the bulk. Tooth enamel is translucent, so dentin is responsible for the color of your smile. Within dentin, there are tubules extending into the root area of each and every tooth. These microscopic pathways make the dentin a sort of superhighway for sensations felt in the nerves. This is important should parts of the enamel get dissolved or broken, so you know that there is a problem.

About Dental Pulp

Odontoblasts are the cells and connective tissues which exist in the center of your smile, within what is known as the dental pulp. Ondontoblasts in the pulp are able to form new dentin. This serves a reparative function in the case of minor decay or dental injuries. From a sensory standpoint, this part of the tooth has the important job of transmitting pain if there is anything wrong with your oral cavity. This helps provide the red flag you need to seek dental attention.

Visit your Katy, TX Dentist

To schedule an appointment with Dr. Colin Lathrop, contact us at 832-437-3849. We welcome patients living in Katy, Fulshear, Orchard, Wallis, Weston Lakes, and the surrounding communities.