Do you think humans will eventually evolve so that we continually get new teeth?

Question

like other animals do?

You know like our hair and nails grow throughout our lives, well it would be great if we always had new teeth instead of just baby teeth, and one other set wouldn't it?

Answer 1

We do get new teeth in childhood.  This is because evolution copes with our "milk teeth" rotting from all the sugar in mother's milk.  After childhood, some of us get a few extra molars (wisdom teeth) to help us make it though the remainder of life.

Keep in mind that in the wild, few of our ancestors would live much past 40.  They'd be out-competed by younger, stronger members.  Nature more or less tells us that 50 is when we should die, because that is when women stop ovulating.  Our teeth are more or less designed to last until that age.

We will never evolve "shark teeth" because we have modern dentistry.

Answer 2

There are many people out there that already experience this. Myself included, I am now on set four....

Answer 3

No, it's not in our lineage. There is history contained in our genes which can limit the ways in which we can evolve.

Answer 4

I do not kink that it is likely as there appears to be no evolutionary pressure to do so.  However, I do remember reading that an artificial means of causing teeth to regrow is commercially feasible in the next 5 years.

Answer 5

My brother has had 3 sets of front teeth....so far.

Answer 6

that would be f***ing awesome!

Answer 7

not all animals do that.

that would be kind of cool, i guess. i'd rather have a prehensile tail.

Answer 8

I had two sets of baby teeth, and my son had two sets of some baby teeth.

It's already a gene that exists in the human populace.

Answer 9

If there was a selection pressure that led to a reproductive differential in favor of growing new sets or rows of teeth, our descendents might eventually have this feature. However, the pressure isn't around right now.

Answer 10

No. you simply do not understand the theory of evolution.

Answer 11

I doubt it, unless civilization collapses, leaving us hostage to the whims of nature. In such a case, it could be that the only food available requires really heavy gnawing, and so people with a mutation for growing or replacing teeth (if there is such a thing) would be healthier and more fertile.

Highly unlikely, though.

Edit: Well there you go, Labgrrl's family would thrive, and most of us would die off.

Answer 12

most of our teeth will last us our lifetime

nails break, so does hair.

i would hate to keep losing and growing teeth.

can you imaging running around missing your two front teeth.

youd look real cute

not