Children’s Dental Tips

Baby teeth (or primary teeth) can begin to erupt as early as six months of age and can stay in your child’s mouth until he or she is 12 years old. People often think that because baby teeth aren’t permanent they’re not important. Nope.

Primary teeth help children develop bones and muscles and speak more easily. They also promote a positive self-image for the child and help guide the child’s permanent teeth into the right spot.

So be sure to take care of and monitor the health of the child’s teeth. Practice good hygiene and be on the lookout for discomfort and infections. Know that keeping your child’s teeth healthy helps keep your child healthy.

Check out Healthy Mouth for the ADA for a guide to Tooth Eruption

At Pediatric Dental Associates, we encourage all parents and caregivers to schedule their child’s first visit for shortly after the child’s first teeth come in. (This could be as early as six months of age.)

Coming early has it benefits. It allows for important education on proper dental health for infants and toddlers. It also helps start acclimating children to our office.

As children get to two to three years of age, our pediatric team will start cleaning the child’s teeth and performing more thorough examinations. Even if the child is hesitant to let us clean his or her teeth, these visits will help the child grow more comfortable with our surroundings and treatment approach.

At any age, it’s important to remember the role parents and caregivers play in promoting positive dental experiences and outcomes. Practice good dental hygiene yourself. And when it comes to appointments and dental visits, avoid words that might scare your child and add to the stress. These include words like pain, shot, needle, and drill. We don’t use these words at our offices and encourage you to not use them at home.

The best way to develop healthy dental habits is to start them early. Even as infants, parents and caregivers should be brushing the child’s gums with a washcloth or soft-bristled brush and warm water. Once most of your child’s teeth have come in — around two years of age — you can begin using toothpaste. Brush in small circles, counter-clockwise, using only a smear of toothpaste. (We encourage non-fluoridated toothpaste for children under two or children who can’t spit. After that, it’s your call.)

As children get older, they can begin taking more control over their dental health and hygiene. Children under ten will still need some guidance, and regardless of age, parents should be inspecting afterwards; following in their footsteps or letting them follow in yours.

Click here for a guide from the Ad Council with tips to keep mouths healthy.

Teeth are a living part of the body, and they need vitamins and minerals to grow strong and healthy. We feel that all children should eat a healthy diet. It’s not only good for their teeth, but also good for their bodies and minds. When it’s time to eat, explore all that’s out there. Mix it up with fruits and vegetables, cereals, dairy products, and meats.

As for snacks, keep them to a minimum and keep them healthy. More snacking means more chances for sugar to stick to the teeth. Stay away from sugary snacks and drinks (including soda and juice), and encourage your child to eat fruits and vegetables, meats and cheeses, yogurt, ice cream, chocolate, popcorn, and nuts and peanut butter if they are not allergic.

No matter what you eat or when you eat it, be sure to brush afterwards.

More information can be found here.

Teething

“Teething” is when a child’s teeth erupt into the mouth. It’s uncomfortable for many children. Symptoms can include a slight fever, an increase in drooling and saliva, ear pulling, and constant chewing on any available object.

So what can you do?

To reduce discomfort during teething, give the child frozen teething toys, or try cold or frozen foods such as bagels or carrots. The cold helps decrease the pain and reduce the inflammation, and the hardness will hasten the eruption of the tooth.

Thumbs and Pacifiers

When it comes to thumbs and pacifiers, there’s a lot to know and a lot you can do. First and foremost, know it’s normal for babies and children to suck on any object that’s placed near their mouth, thumbs and pacifiers included. It’s how babies learn and receive nutrition, and find safety and comfort.

The things to keep in mind when it comes to thumbs and pacifiers are that if over-used, children could experience dental problems like protruding teeth or teeth that don’t erupt properly.

We encourage all parents and caregivers to monitor the sucking habits of children, especially around the time that the permanent teeth erupt. The pediatric dentist will provide important dental health information, and inform your child about the long-term consequences of this habit.

Cavities are caused by bacteria or germs that live in the mouth and grow by sugary and sticky foods and drinks.

When the bacteria digest food they create acids that soften our teeth. This is a gradual process. With proper care, it can be avoided. Everything we eat and drink — with the exception of water has the potential to cause cavities if the teeth are not cared for properly.

Cavities and decay can start early. We often see infants and toddlers with “Early Childhood Caries.” It is a disease that is caused by improper or prolonged use of the bottle, sippy cup, and/or improper breastfeeding. Appropriate oral hygiene measures will reduce the risk of nursing-pattern decay, both for the breast-fed and bottled fed baby.

When it comes to cavity prevention, here are a few things to keep in mind:

• No bottle after one year of age.
• Never allow your child to sleep with a bottle or sippy cup.
• Avoid extended and repetitive feeding times (nursing, bottle or food even.) Focus on meals, not snacks.
• Limit the juice and soda. None is ideal, but allow children no more than three 8 oz. servings daily.
• Snack healthfully on things like fresh fruits, vegetables, cheese or plain popcorn.
• Avoid chips, crackers, cheese curls, cookies, cake, and candy.
• Help your child brush his or her teeth twice daily until the age of eight. At this point, you can begin supervising your child’s brushing.
• Remember that liquid medicines also may contain high levels of sugar. Always clean your child’s teeth after he/she takes medicine.