The Three Best Steps For Keeping Your Child's Teeth Healthy And Cavity-Free
If you have a child that is now old enough to see a dentist, you might want to talk to him or her about ways to help keep your child's teeth healthy and free of cavities. Your dentist may make some suggestions that will help you with this, including making sure your child visits the dentist regularly. In addition, your dentist might recommend taking two more steps to help your child protect his or her teeth.
Take The Child To The Dentist
Regular dental visits are probably one of the top things you can do for your child's oral health. A regular visit is used to clean the child's teeth, check the teeth for problems, and fix minor problems with the teeth. Your dentist will recommend two dental visits each year, and you should keep up with these visits to help your child take good care of his or her teeth.
Get Dental Sealants
A dental sealant is a product made of resin, and it is in the form of a liquid when dentists apply it to teeth. Before this occurs, the dentist cleans the tooth thoroughly with a motorized brush. This removes any debris or film from the tooth, which is vital when getting sealants. After that, the dentist must let the tooth dry so the sealant material will stick to the tooth.
Next, the dentist applies the liquid resin sealant material and shines a light at the tooth. The light contains heat energy, which dries and hardens the sealant. This completes the process of getting a dental sealant. Dentists recommend placing sealants on teeth to help children avoid cavities, and it's important to know that sealants will typically last for many years.
There is no set age in which children should get dental sealants. In most situations, dentists begin applying sealant to teeth as soon as teeth fully erupt. They can be placed on baby teeth and permanent teeth, and they may have to be reapplied after they wear off.
With dental sealants, your child will have a much lower risk of developing cavities, and this is important because of the effects cavities have on teeth. A cavity forms when decay eats away at a tooth's surface. The decay will continue to spread if left in the child's mouth too long, and it can actually consume an entire tooth over time.
Decay that is on a tooth does not simply stay on the tooth, though. The decay can work into the roots of the tooth, causing a severe infection, which can require a root canal in many cases. If the tooth is a baby tooth, the decay can damage the permanent tooth that has not yet erupted. Decay on teeth can also cause bad breath and lead to gum disease and loss of tooth.
It's also important to know that dental sealants are affordable, especially when you compare their cost to the cost of fixing a cavity on a tooth. The average cost for one sealant is between $30 to $40.
Teach Your Child Good Oral Care Habits
While dental sealants can help keep cavities away, it is also important to help your child learn and develop good oral care habits. To help small kids develop good habits, you should set an example to them by taking good care of your teeth. Make sure they see you brush your teeth often and floss. Kids tend to learn by watching more so than by parents just giving instructions.
Secondly, you could make a chart to use with your child. The chart could contain boxes the child could checkmark each day after brushing. If the child brushes twice each day for a certain length of time, you could offer a reward to him or her for good brushing habits.
Following the dentist's recommendation to place sealants on your child's teeth is one of the best forms of protection you can offer your child for his or her teeth. If you would like to learn more about these, contact a pediatric dental clinic, such as Sunnyside Dentistry for Children, today to schedule an appointment with a dentist.
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