Malocclusion and dental crowding arose 12,000 years ago with earliest farmers

Malocclusion and dental crowding arose 12,000 years ago with earliest farmers, study shows

Hunter-gatherers had almost no malocclusion and dental crowding, and the condition first became common among the world’s earliest farmers some 12,000 years ago in Southwest Asia, according to findings published in the journal PLOS ONE.

the jaws of semi-sedentary, and farming groups showed signs of dental crowding (pictured)

By analysing the lower jaws and teeth crown dimensions of 292 archaeological skeletons from the Levant, Anatolia and Europe, from between 28,000–6,000 years ago, an international team of scientists have discovered a clear separation between European hunter-gatherers, Near Eastern/Anatolian semi-sedentary hunter-gatherers and transitional farmers, and European farmers, based on the form and structure of their jawbones. [...] ucd.ie (Via B&W3)