Dental Care Necessities for Babies

A child’s baby teeth deserve as much care as their permanent teeth. Although these primary teeth do eventually fall out your child should still be seeing a dentist in Irvington every six months. Sometimes a child or baby’s teeth are hard to clean so the debris tends to accumulate and remain on their teeth. If this accumulation is left unchecked bacteria can start to grow, which will lead to tooth decay. Making sure your child’s baby teeth are clean is important since they are fundamental to child’s overall development and health.

Baby’s teeth usually begin to come in between six months of age and 24 months. Sometimes a tooth can even erupt in the first month. It is important to remember that the tooth should be cleaned as soon as it comes in. To clean your baby’s tooth gently a soft washcloth or gauze can be used. Just like with older children and adults this should be done after ever meal or bottle. Once multiple teeth arrive a small-bristled toothbrush can be used to clean their teeth. Pediatric dentists recommend that this toothbrush be ran under warm water before use.

When it comes to using toothpaste only a pea-sized amount should be used. It can be dangerous for your child if they swallow too much toothpaste. Once they get older and have the coordination to use a toothbrush on their own they should be prompted to brush their own teeth so they can establish a habit of it. Also, toothbrushes should be replaced every two to three months. By the time your baby is one-year-old they should see a family dentist or pediatric dentist in Irvington. By seeing a dentist you can acquire a professional cleaning plan and institute long-term dental hygiene.

The Importance of Child Dental Care

Many people think that their child’s dental care is not of high importance because they do not yet have their permanent adult teeth. The problem is that even though children and infants only have their baby teeth still, they are not unaffected by oral health problems.

Many babies develop teeth in their first month of life called neonatal teeth. Even if it is just one tooth it does require regular dental hygiene. By the time a baby is six months old they will at least have one baby tooth that has appeared, which requires cleaning. During the next six months, from 6 months to 24 months, a child will begin their teething stage. When this happens a child is usually irritable, biting on objects, drooling, and ear pulling. To ease their pain techniques such as massaging the gums can help, as well as giving them a chilled teething ring, or even getting a teething ointment recommendation from your general dentist.

As your child grows older different foods can affect the health of their teeth. Too many sugars from foods such as candy, juice, cookies, or cakes can result in tooth decay. Also starches found in potato chips and pretzels can lead to tooth decay. These types of foods plus the added difficultly of cleaning a child’s teeth add to the debris that remains in their mouth. This debris causes bacteria to grow resulting in tooth decay. Even though baby teeth eventually fall out and are replaced by permanent teeth, healthy teeth are extremely important to a child’s complete health. Also, if the decay of a child’s baby teeth goes unchecked by their pediatric dentist is may start to infect the permanent as well.