Your Child’s Teeth – Helpful Tips for Parents

admin — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 16:44:20 +0000

Before the teeth erupt, clean the baby’s mouth and gums with a soft cloth or infant toothbrush at bath time. This helps ready the baby for the teeth cleaning to come.
When the teeth erupt, clean the child’s teeth at least twice a day with a toothbrush designed for small children.
Take the baby to see a pediatric dentist by the baby’s first birthday. The earlier the visit, the better. It is important to establish a dental home to ensure that the child’s oral health care is delivered in a comprehensive, ongoing, accessible, coordinated and family-centered way by the dentist.
If the baby is placed to sleep with a bottle, use nothing but water. When a child is given a bottle containing sugary liquids such as milk, formula or fruit juice, the teeth are under attack by bacterial acid for extended periods. This can cause cavities in babies called “early childhood caries,” formerly known as baby bottle tooth decay.
Breast-feeding has been shown to be beneficial for a baby’s health and development. However, if the child prefers to be breast-fed often or for long periods once a tooth appears and other foods/beverages have been introduced into her diet, she is at risk for severe tooth decay. Clean the baby’s mouth with a wet washcloth after breast-feeding, and encourage a bottle with plain water during the nighttime.
2011 FAST FACTS
Never dip a pacifier in anything sweet; it can lead to serious tooth decay.
Wean the infant from the bottle by one year of age.

Reproduced with permission from The American Association of Pediatric Dentistry www.aapd.org

Why are Baby Teeth so Important?

admin — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 16:40:39 +0000

Baby teeth are important. They serve two major functions: first, they’re necessary for your child to chew and speak; second, they serve another very important purpose — they save space for your child’s future permanent teeth.

A baby tooth usually remains in your child’s mouth until a permanent tooth underneath it is ready to emerge through the gums. The roots of the baby tooth dissolve and the tooth becomes loose and falls out. A few weeks later, you’ll see the permanent tooth poke through. Occasionally, a baby tooth can come out too early — or can be accidentally knocked out – and a space maintainer can be installed by your pediatric dentist. The purpose is to take the place of the baby tooth until the permanent tooth is ready to emerge.

If teeth on either side of the open space encroach upon the empty space, there may not be room for the permanent tooth. The new permanent tooth may erupt out of its proper position and can affect positioning of other teeth. If teeth become crowded and out of alignment with each other, then the teeth are maloccluded. Maloccluded teeth are difficult to clean, have greater chances of decay, and later might require expensive and time-consuming orthodontic treatment.

Bellevue Pediatric Dentistry | Bellevue, WA

Your Child’s Teeth – Helpful Tips for Parents

Why are Baby Teeth so Important?