As a parent the only thing you care about is doing well by your children. This extends from sending them to the right schools to getting them the toys they like. An area that often doesn’t crop up, is the early childhood dental health. While many parents care about their child brushing their teeth and flossing, what happens if your baby or kid gets a cavity? Is it safe?
Baby teeth and Cavities
Many parents want to overlook the issue of fillings and cavities because because baby teeth eventually fall out between the age of 6 and 12, to enable the adult teeth to come in. However, paying attention to baby teeth health is vital.
As you know, cavities come about as a result of plaque building up on the tooth’s surface and causing tooth decay. Cavities in baby teeth actually spread quickly as the tooth enamel is thinner than adult teeth. If these cavities go untreated, they could cause infections that spread to other teeth and even damage the rest of the body.
Therefore, absolutely get teeth fillings for baby teeth to prevent infections from causing pain, spreading and requiring a painful tooth removal. Tooth removal is definitely not a solution, as removing them could cause future orthodontic issues.
Spotting cavities in young children can be hard, but signs usually occur when there’s a sensitivity to cold foods or eating hard foods. This ends up progressing to a constant toothache.
Most children should begin seeing a dentist early on. Some even recommend as young as 1 year old to start them off with good habits and identify any risk of cavities. The quickest way to give a young child cavities is if they eat throughout the day as these foods end up sticking onto the enamel and the bacteria can build from there. Secondly, eating sugary foods or sipping on juices will drastically increase the risks of cavities in young children.
When looking for a dentist to care for children, make sure you find one that is comfortable with dealing with them. They can boast as much as they want, but child dentistry is a specific type of care. If you’re curious about how we can care for your child here in Jacksonville, give us a call and we can help you out.