Important Oral Care for your Baby

When I graduated dental school at Marquette University, the gold standard for when to first evaluate a child's teeth was by the age of 4.  The recommendation has changed since then.   The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports 2 to 5-year-olds are the only age group in this country where the incidence of decay, early childhood caries and its serious health consequences in particular, is on the rise.  Solid data shows children seen by age 1 have significantly less dental disease throughout childhood than their peers who are first seen later in life.

The WDA Dental Home goal is to examine all children by age 1 (or six months after the eruption of the first tooth) and educate pregnant moms, parents and caregivers about why baby teeth matter and how to care for them.

The WDA defines a dental home as:

“The ongoing relationship between the dentist who is the primary dental care provider and the patient, which includes comprehensive oral health care, beginning no later than age 1 in a continuously accessible, coordinated and family-centered way.”

Many people think baby teeth don’t matter because they’ll eventually fall out. The truth is baby teeth do matter. Primary, or baby teeth, are very important to a child’s early physical, social and emotional development.  Healthy baby teeth:

• Foster good nutrition through proper chewing
• Aid in speech development
• Build self-esteem by providing a beautiful smile
• Enable a child to pay attention and learn in school without the distraction of dental pain
• Save space in the jaw that is needed for proper development of adult (permanent) teeth

Primary teeth are susceptible to decay as soon as they appear in the mouth.  Early childhood decay can destroy the teeth of an infant or young child.  This is likely to occur when the teeth are exposed to sugary liquids for a long period of time.  Milk, including breast milk, formula, and fruit juice are among those liquids.  The good news is that tooth decay is preventable. Taking a few simple steps can reduce decay in the early development of teeth, thus ensuring a healthy smile for your child:

Never put you baby or toddler to bed with a bottle.  This allows for sugary substances to sit on the child's teeth for a long period of time.  If your child needs to have something to comfort them between meals or at bedtime, give the child a pediatrician or dentist recommended pacifier.

Begin oral care early.  Wiping the baby's gums with a wet cloth after each feeding can help reduce decay.  You can also begin brushing your child's teeth as soon as the first tooth appears.  Be sure to ask your dentist if you are choosing to use toothpaste before the age of 2.

Another Important thing to do is to schedule your child's first dental visit by the first birthday.  This is recommended by the American Dental Association.  By doing so,  not only do you start checking for early signs of decay and other problems, but you can establish a positive relationship between your child and the dentist.  The hygienist can teach your child the proper ways to care for their teeth. Doing this will help to build a lifetime of good dental habits.

Here at Crow Family Dental we would like to welcome our "littlest" friends by encouraging you to bring your children in to our office for a "dental-well-baby-checkup".  Starting this December, for children up to the age of 2 this will be done as a professional courtesy at no charge to you.  We look forward to seeing you and having your family become a part of ours!