Five Tips Every Parent Should Know about their Children’s Dental Health
- Children should see the dentist by age 1
- First teeth erupt at 6 months of age.
- As soon as teeth are present, cavities (dental decay) can begin.
- Baby bottle tooth decay: what you put in your baby’s bottle affects tooth development.
- Cavities on baby teeth can affect the eruption of adult teeth and should NOT just be ignored.
- Cavities are contagious and there is a time children will have a combination of both adult and baby teeth.
- A child’s first dental visit should be fun and educational
- Very different from an adult check-up!
- Important to build a positive experience to develop comfort and trust at the dentist.
- We check to make sure the teeth are developing in a healthy and timely manner.
- Count the number of teeth the child has.
- Review technique and frequency of brushing your child’s teeth.
- By age 6, children should be brushing independently and flossing by age 10
- This is around when kids are tying their shoes by themselves.
- We will review how to properly brush and stress the importance of removing “sugar bugs”.
- Sealants help prevent cavities
- Quick and simple procedure completed at the dental office.
- A thin layer of “sealant” is painted over a tooth to seal off deep grooves and prevent cavities.
- Kids won’t even notice them.
- Diet affects the health of your child’s teeth
- Limit the intake of candy and even junk food.
- There is sugar hidden in so many products!
- Drink water between food and limit snacking.
- Our office is kid friendly
- Many of our patients are under the assumption that we do not treat children which could not be farther from the truth. Dr. Vander Vliet and our hygienists are wonderful with kids, and we welcome them into our practice. So if you are thinking about scheduling an appointment for your child or children, please do! We would love to meet them!
