Why do we have crooked teeth when our ancestors didn’t? - G. Richard Scott

Prevodilac: Una Kavazović Lektor: Milenka Okuka

All these ancient skulls have perfectly straight teeth,

Sve ove prastare lobanje imaju savršeno ravne zube,

despite almost certainly never sporting braces.

iako skoro definitivno nikada nisu nosile fiksnu protezu.

And this isn't some strange sample.

I ovo nije samo neki čudnovat uzorak.

According to the fossil record,

Prema fosilnim podacima,

ancient humans usually had straight teeth,

prastari ljudi su obično imali ravne zube,

complete with third molars— or wisdom teeth.

sa sve trećim molarima— iliti umnjacima.

In fact, the dental dilemmas that fuel the demand for braces

Zapravo, dentalne dileme koje trenutno podstiču potražnju proteza

and wisdom teeth extractions today appear to be recent developments.

i uklanjanje umnjaka čine se kao skorašnja dešavanja.

So what happened?

Pa, šta se to desilo?

While it’s nearly impossible to know for sure,

Iako je skoro nemoguće znati sigurno,

scientists have a hypothesis.

naučnici imaju pretpostavku.

A couple million years ago,

Pre nekoliko miliona godina,

the ancestors of modern humans lived a subsistence lifestyle.

preci savremenog čoveka su živeli životom fokusiranim na preživljavanje.

Their teeth and jaws had to work hard to make the food they ate digestible.

Njihovi zubi i vilice su vredno radili da načine hranu koju su jeli probavljivom.

Indeed, the surfaces of many of their teeth show extensive wear and flattening.

Zaista, površina mnoštva njihovih zuba pokazuje istrošenost i spljoštenost.

They also had larger jaws and teeth overall.

Takođe su imali veće vilice i zube uopšte.

At some point, they began using tools and fire to cook and prepare food,

U nekom trenutku, počeli su koristiti alatke i vatru da spreme i skuvaju hranu,

which helped break it down.

što je pomoglo da je razlože.

A lot more time passed and, around 12,000 years ago,

Još dosta vremena je prošlo i, pre oko 12 000 godina,

some humans started farming and domesticating animals and plants.

ljudi su počeli da se bave poljoprivredom i da pripitomljavaju životinje i biljke.

Over the course of several thousand years,

Tokom nekoliko narednih hiljada godina,

it became more common for people to process and refine their food.

postalo je učestalije za ljude da prerađuju i rafinišu svoju hranu.

Milling technologies helped remove the tougher parts of grains,

Tehnologija mlevenja je pomogla pri uklanjanju tvrđih delova zrna,

like the germ and bran from rice and wheat.

poput pirinčanih i pšeničnih mekinja.

Fast forward to the industrial Revolution,

U periodu industrijske revolucije

and technological innovations dramatically accelerated these processes.

su tehnološke inovacije drastično ubrazale ove procese.

In a relatively short time,

Za relativno kratko vreme,

many human mouths were relieved of a great deal

usta mnogih ljudi su oslobođena prilično velikog dela

of their grinding, crushing, and pulverizing duties.

svojih dužnosti mlevenja, drobljenja i usitnjavanja.

And interestingly, it was around this time

I zanimljivo, baš u to vreme

that tooth crookedness appears to have become more common.

krivljenje zuba postaje učestalije.

Examining fossils spanning millions of years of evolution,

Istražujući fosile u periodu od miliona godina evolucije,

researchers have observed a gradual decrease in tooth and jaw size

istraživači su primetili postepeno smanjenje veličine zuba i vilice

in humans and our ancestors.

kod ljudi i naših predaka.

Many think that, for most of human history,

Mnogi misle da su, tokom većeg dela ljudske istorije,

dietary shifts— like the introduction of meat and the advent of cooking—

promene u ishrani— poput uvođenja mesa i pojave kuvanja—

were gradual,

bile postepene,

and that changes in tooth and jaw size basically kept pace with one another.

i da su promene u veličini zuba i vilice pratile jedna drugu.

But with the more recent revolutions in agricultural and culinary habits,

Međutim, sa modernijim revolucijama u poljoprivrednim i kulinarskim navikama,

that relationship changed.

i ova veza se promenila.

As the theory goes, over a relatively short period,

Kako teorija kaže, tokom relativno kratkog perioda,

some human populations saw a decrease in jawbone size,

neke ljudske populacije su iskusile smanjenje veličine vilične kosti,

while teeth stayed roughly the same size,

dok su zubi ostali približno iste veličine,

meaning they're left vying for limited space.

što znači da su ostali da se bore za ograničen prostor.

When they do grow in, they may displace others

Kako rastu, mogu da izmeste druge

and get jostled into some eccentric positions.

te da budu ugurani u neke ekscentrične položaje.

And then wisdom teeth, which are usually the last to make their debut,

A onda umnjaci, koji su obično poslednji koji se pojavljuju,

seem to only complicate things further.

još više zakomplikuju situaciju.

In many cases, they have little or no space to emerge.

U mnogim slučajevima, oni imaju malo ili čak i nemaju mesta da se pojave.

This can lead to impacted wisdom teeth,

Ovo može dovesti do impaktiranih umnjaka,

which may cause discomfort and infections if not surgically removed.

koji mogu izazvati nelagodu ili infekcije, ako se ne uklone hirurški.

So larger jaws appear to be associated with greater chewing demands.

Veće vilice se obično vezuju za veće zahteve pri žvakanju.

And many scientists think that as people's diets have become less chewy,

Mnogi naučnici misle da je ljudska ishrana zahtevala sve manje žvakanja,

their jaws have gotten smaller— and that this has led to dental crowding,

te da su se vilice smanjile— i da je ovo dovelo do dentalnog gomilanja,

resulting in dental crookedness and impacted wisdom teeth.

što je rezultiralo iskrivljenošću zuba i impaktiranošću umnjaka.

This hypothesis has been supported by some preliminary experimental data.

Ova pretpostavka je poduprta nekim preliminarnim eksperimentalnim podacima.

In a 1983 study, researchers raised 43 squirrel monkeys

U studiji iz 1983, istraživači su odgajili 43 majmuna saimira

on diets of either naturally tough or artificially soft food.

na ishrani prirodno čvrste ili veštački mekane hrane.

Those fed softer food had more crowded premolars,

Oni koji su hranjeni mekšom hranom imali su pretrpane pretkutnjake,

rotated or displaced teeth, and narrower dental arches.

iskrenute ili pogrešno izrasle zube, kao i uži zubni luk.

And a 2004 study similarly observed that hyraxes raised on cooked foods

A studija iz 2004. je slično ispitivala kako su damani uzgajani na kuvanoj hrani

experienced roughly 10% less growth in facial areas involved in chewing

iskusili oko 10% manjeg rasta u oblastima lica vezanim za žvakanje

compared to those given raw and dried foods.

u poređenju sa onima koji su hranjeni sirovom i sušenom hranom.

In other words, the issue at large seems to be environmental—

Drugim rečima, problem u celini se čini vezanim za životnu sredinu—

or one of lifestyle— instead of a genetic one,

ili vezanim za životni stil— umesto genetski,

though heritable factors may be at play in some instances.

iako nasledni faktori mogu biti na delu u nekim slučajevima.

It’s estimated that somewhere between 30 to 60% of people today

Procenjuje se da otprilike između 30 do 60 procenata ljudi danas

experience some level of tooth crowding.

ima neku vrstu pretrpavanja zuba.

But this trend varies across global populations.

Ali ovaj trend varira među globalnom populacijom.

Some people naturally never have wisdom teeth.

Neki ljudi prirodno nikada nemaju umnjake.

And some don’t experience tooth crowding or crookedness

A neki nemaju pretrpavanje zuba ili njihovo krivljenje

and still get their wisdom teeth without a hitch.

i ipak imaju umnjake koji izniknu bez problema.

This seems to coincide with diets that are less processed.

Čini se da se ovo poklapa sa dijetama koje su manje obrađene.

So how can we prevent tooth crowding early,

Dakle, kako možemo sprečiti pretrpavanje zuba ranije,

using lifestyle changes and orthodontics?

koristeći promene u životnom stilu i ortodontiju?

Well, it’s certainly something to chew over.

Pa, to je sigurno tema koju bi valjalo prežvakati.