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Regular dental Check-ups and dental care such as cleaning, fluoride treatments and sealants provide your child with “smile insurance”. Plan your child’s first dental visit within six months after the first tooth appears, but not later than the first birthday in a Pediatric Dentist in my area. Consider it a “well baby checkup” for your child’s teeth.
The sooner children begin getting regular dental checkups, the healthier their mouths will stay throughout their lives. Early checkups help prevent cavities and tooth decay, which can lead to pain, trouble concentrating and other medical issues.
During the dental checkup, your child’s Pediatric Dentist in West Palm Beach will:
- Check your kid overall oral health for any trouble areas.
- Check on oral hygiene, injuries, cavities, or other problems.
- Remove any plaque and tartar buildup and may polish his/her teeth.
- Find out your child’s risk of getting tooth decay.
- Assess how the teeth are developing.
- Let you know if your child may later need treatment for crooked teeth or a bad bite.
- Provide advice to help you take care of your child’s health.
When the enamel (protective surface) of your kid’s teeth wears away, it exposes the underlying material, called dentin. This leaves your child’s teeth vulnerable to plaque and bacteria, which cause decay.
High levels of acid in everyday foods and drinks can be just as harmful as sugar when it comes to tooth decay. From oranges to wine, high-acid foods and drinks can wear away your kid’s teeth, causing decay, sensitivity, and even discoloring. The way your kids consume these items can lessen their damage on your teeth. Follow these tips to reduce the effects of acid on your teeth
- Eat with meals. Instead of snacking throughout the day, save acidic foods for mealtimes. This will reduce their contact with your teeth and help neutralize the acid by eating it with other foods.
- Wash down with water. Sip water alongside or after the acidic food or drink to wash it out of your mouth.
- Use a straw. If you drink acidic beverages, reduce their contact with your teeth by using a straw and finishing the drink quickly, instead of sipping over a long period of time.
- Look for low or no-sugar drinks. Read nutrition labels to keep down your sugar consumption and consider options like water, tea, and coconut water.
- Wait before brushing. Acid softens your enamel, so brushing immediately after eating or drinking high-acid foods or drinks can cause damage. Wait at least half an hour and then start brushing. In the meantime, you can always rinse your mouth with tap water.
It is important to notice the signs of tooth erosion in its early stages (sensitivity and discoloration) before more severe damage occur, such as cracks, pain, and decay. Seeing a Pediatric Dentist in West Palm Beach regularly ensures your child’s teeth and mouth are healthy. Do not wait until your kid feel pain to see a Dentist near me.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 19 percent of kids between the ages of 2 and 19 have untreated cavities. To prevent childhood tooth decay, healthy dental habits should start from day one along with regular visits to a Pediatric Dentist in West Palm Beach.
There are some bad habits that can negatively affects your child's dental health. These habits should be replaced by healthy ones:
- Middle-of-the-Night Breast/Bottle feeding - Baby teeth can become decayed if overexposed to breast/bottle feeding (milk, formula, or juice) at night because of the sugar.
- Nail-Biting – It can chip, crack, or wear down your kid’s teeth and impact his/her jaw causing jaw dysfunction. Additionally, biting nails can introduce harmful bacteria into your kid’s mouth.
- Thumb-Sucking – For children ages five and up, with permanent teeth, it can cause an overbite or incorrect alignment of the teeth creating difficulties to chew.
- Opening packages or other items with the teeth – Using the teeth as a tool to open packages or other items can cause your child’ teeth to chip or crack.
- Playing contact sports without a mouth guard – A hit to the mouth during a big game can lead to lose, chipped or even lost teeth.
- Chewing on ice, pens, and pencils – It can cause teeth to crack or chip and can even irritate soft tissue inside teeth. It can also lead to dangerous oral trauma if a child falls while having a pen or pencil in the mouth,
- Grinding teeth – Stress and sleeping habits are common causes of teeth grinding, which wear teeth down over time.
- Brushing too hard – Using bristles that are too firm or brushing aggressively can damage teeth and irritate gums.
- Neglecting the Dentist – Wait until there is a problem before bringing your child to the Pediatric Dentist near me. A baby is at risk for tooth decay as soon as the first tooth emerges.
The American Dental Association suggests that kids visit the Pediatric Dentist in Wellington within six months after their first tooth appears and no later than their first birthday. The Kid’s dentist will help parents implement a preventative strategy to protect the teeth from harm and bad habits and demonstrate how infant teeth should be brushed and flossed.
Tooth decay is one of the most infectious oral diseases. Harmful cavity-causing bacteria can be passed from person to person, just like the flu. Numerous studies have shown that cavity-causing bacteria can pass from person to person through the transfer of saliva, such as sharing utensils, blowing on food, and yes, even kissing.
Babies and newborns do not have the bacteria that cause tooth decay in their mouths at birth, but if someone with infected saliva kisses them on the mouth, those bacteria can then colonize. Also, some researchers concluded mothers with cavities can transmit cavity-producing oral bacteria to their babies when they clean pacifiers by sticking them in their own mouths, or by sharing spoons.
When teeth first come into the mouth, when they first erupt, the enamel is very soft and are very susceptible becoming them particularly vulnerable. ADA recommends scheduling a baby first dental appointment at the first birthday at a kid friendly office.
Tooth decay can negatively impact a child's quality of life, performance in school, and success in life. Regular checkups and professional cleaning every six months in a Pediatric Office near me will reduce the possibility of developing cavities at early age.
Craving or chewing ice or drinking iced beverages is the most common symptom of pagophagia. It can be a symptom of iron deficiency anemia, the most common form of anemia.
Ice munching will not destroy your health like other addictions will. But can provoke dental damages. Chewing ice, just like many other hard foods, puts an enormous amount of pressure on your teeth and has the potential to damage teeth, enamel, and gums. While the dentin in your teeth is relatively flexible, the enamel is extremely hard and does not flex much. Chewing on ice can wear down and weaken the enamel of your teeth, which can cause cracking. Also, it causes potential cuts on the soft tissues inside your mouth. Constantly chewing on ice and pressing down on the gums could cause injury to your gums and potentially lead to gum recession.
This habit is especially bad for those who have braces or those who have dental work at a Child’s Dentist such as fillings and crowns. Also, for those with sensitive teeth, chewing ice will most likely worsen, rather than numb, the pain.
The American Dental Association suggests skipping ice chewing. It is recommended to visit a Pediatric Dentistry in Wellington every 6 months for professional cleaning at regular check-ups.
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1037 S. State Road 7 Suite 215
Wellington, FL 33414