I think a lot of folks assume that evolution means "all the crappy stuff whittled out over time, and only the good stuff remains" when in fact I think evolution aims for "eh, they reproduced. Good enough"

You had no pain killers?

Yea I got dry sockets after, even after being really careful. It was a nightmare. I remember lying on the floor on the carpet drooling trying to eat mac n cheese.

Not all. Pre industrial humans where I live ate a lot of slow roasted cactus. After 2 days buried with hot stones the cactus hearts were caramelized. I've tasted it prepared in the traditional manner and it's just syrup in a leaf. Delicious, and I have no doubt it was great energy for people that had to walk miles every day.

Anyone that lived past 30 had their teeth rot right out of their head, according to the archiological record.

Depends on where they were and what they were eating. Humans are really amazing in that we can eat almost anything that's not a straight up tree, and we've existed across the planet in just about every ecological niche. I remember reading somewhere they could estimate the age of desert burial/skeleton remains on how worn the teeth are due to the sand getting in the food. But I'm sure no processed sugar is pretty beneficial tho

Still may have lost a few from some bucking animal you were chasing after. Or your cousin chucking a rock at the *bird" he said he saw behind you.

Until we got agriculture.

Depends. I had 4 at 90°. Only one hurt a little. They caused pockets, which are hard to clean (impossible by yourself) and can accelerate bone loss. I removed 3 of them. 2 by a jaw surgeon. They were creating a space bewteen molars deeper inside the bone, while also creating an opening at the top. Nasty.

Chronic inflamation of the gums don't hurt either. Best way to tell is by a mouth hygiënist. If your gums bleed easily while flossing, it's a good idea to keep flossing. Takes about 1-2 weeks before the gums calm down and the swelling dissipates. I use those tiny round brushes to get in between. If you start using those, m start with the thinnest wire. The metal should absolutely not scrape against the teeth, only the brush.

Taken years to form that habit...

We don't do general anesthesia for most things dental related here in NL. But after hearing the sound bounce around in my head I wish we did.

they’ve been shrinking as we ~~evolved~~ changed our diet

No genetic changes (evolution) happened. If as children we ate only very tough meat and lots of chewy vegetables - no bread or rice or potato softness - our same genetics would result in much larger adult jaws.