Teeth

Teeth are the first stop for the fuel entering your body. They have several jobs. First, they bite and chop mouth-size lumps out of large food items, like bread or an apple. The chisel-shaped front teeth, called incisors, do this best. The pointed canine teeth just beside them may tear and rip at the food. The teeth then squash, crush, and chew the food into a pulp. They mix it with saliva into a soft, squishy lump-ready to swallow. The broad, flat-topped rear teeth, the premolars and molars, are best at doing this. They are near the hinge of the jaw joint, where the powerful jaw-closing muscles allow them to exert tremendous pressure.