We use them to cut and chop food, they are important for proper articulation of words and sounds, they give a shape to our face. However, maybe the secondary role they play is actually the most important one: a beautiful smile. The importance of a beautiful smile in our everyday conversation is paramount as it is one of the first things people notice, value us by, in business and private contacts alike.
As parents, you have to be aware that the health of your children’s teeth is at the greatest extant in your hands.
It is you who will be there when the first primary teeth appear and you will start to take care of them. It is you who will decide when to take your child to the dentist for the first time. It is you who will teach your child to brush his/her teeth on his/her own and you will check if s/he is doing it right.
We are here to help you. We will teach you how, when and what you have to do so that your child has healthy teeth and a beautiful smile.
PRIMARY TEETH
Babies start teething when they are about six months old and that is the time when the parents’ care about child’s teeth starts.
The reason for this is the fact that as soon as the first teeth erupt in baby’s mouth, the risk of plaque formation is present. The plaque forms acids that can make a hole in the tooth structure called cavity. The main cause is different kinds of sugars from food and drinks that we take daily. The bacteria from tooth plaque (bits of food particles left on teeth) degrade sugars and make acids causing gradual decomposition of tooth structure. This process happens one hour to hour and a half after we have eaten some food and that is why it is very important to have meals and not to eat food in between meals if we want to have healthy teeth. That way saliva, a natural factor of teeth protection, has enough time to clean and remineralize them.
By the age of two your child should have 20 primary teeth, 5 at each side of the upper and lower jaw. At this age, the focus is on the healthy eating regime and developing good habits, primarily on daily tooth brushing rhythm. Initially, teeth are wiped with a wet cloth, followed by the introduction of a tooth-brush and subsequently tooth – paste.
You have to be aware that your child will not be able to brush his/her teeth independently before the age of 7, so you will have to brush your child’s teeth properly before that age. At this age, parents are responsible for various bad habits like, for example, sleeping with a baby bottle, which may seriously impact child’s teeth health. Circular caries, which is caries of all teeth of the upper jaw, lower jaw or both jaws, certainly is the most drastic of all.
It may happen that caries is formed in child’s teeth in spite of parents’ good care. In that case, the only solution is caries cleaning and filling placement. It is done under local anesthesia and requires active cooperation of parents, child and dentist.
THE FIRST EXAMINATION
You should take your child to dentist for the first examination when s/he is about three years old. At that age children are aware of everything, can communicate and understand what they are told.
At the first examination, a child is, in most cases, just getting familiar with the dental office environment, which is extremely important. If s/he agrees to sit on the chair, we have a little ride, show him/her the lights, lamps, air spray and other things s/he finds interesting. We count his/her teeth together, we make comments how good s/he is and together with you, we show him/her how to brush his/her teeth properly. During the first visit, our goal is to create a positive experience, the one that the child will remember gladly as something that is fun, not at all scary. That is a solid foundation for future visits, when we may have to provide some dental service to the child.
It is a big mistake to wait for the child’s first toothache and then bring him/her to the dentist for the first time. We will do our best to help, but that will be a traumatic experience for the child and for us, it will be more difficult to work.
APPEARRING OF PERMANENT TEETH
At the age of six, permanent teeth start to appear and primary teeth are gradually lost. At this age, it is necessary to actively involve a dentist into preventive work which is focused on protection of teeth enamel. Enamel is a protective teeth layer made of hard mineralized substance; it is actually the hardest substance in our body.
The professional tooth cleaning, fissure sealants on molar teeth, teeth flossing and proper oral hygiene are crucial during the first three years after appearing of each and every permanent tooth.
Fissure sealants is a simple and pain-free dental treatment where a material similar to a white filling is placed in the pits and fissures of chewing surfaces of molar teeth. That way food cannot remain on the surface of the teeth which is most susceptible to dental caries. We strongly recommend that you bring your child for this treatment right after appearance of permanent molar teeth.
Fluoride therapy is the delivery of fluoride to the teeth topically in order to have the fluoride built into the tooth structure. Although presently there are different views on the way in which fluoride should be taken into our body, it has been proven that when fluoride is built into the tooth structure, it makes the tooth stronger, harder and therefore minimizes the chance for caries.
PERMANENT TEETH
At the age of 13 your child should have 28 permanent teeth, seven at each side of the upper and lower jaw. After the age of 16, dental preventive measures play a lesser role.
Children are now those who should fully take care of their own teeth, and your role is just to constantly remind them of their dental appointments. If we have done our part of the job properly, and if your child has healthy teeth, your child should visit us every six months. If during your child’s development you abide by and implement all preventive measures we mentioned, the chances that your child will have healthy teeth are much higher.
We have a mutual goal: to give your child a smile that s/he will be proud of.
THE FIRST EXAMINATION
PERMANENT TEETH