subject: Dental Care For Children- When To Start? [print this page] Parents of young children often wonder when their child should first start taking care of their own dental health. When should they first take them to the dentist? The answers to these questions might surprise you. Babies' teeth begin to form during the second trimester of a pregnancy. After a child is born, bacteria can begin to form in his or her mouth and must be cleaned. In order to prevent dental issues with young children, it is recommended that parents start cleaning their child's mouth at a young age.
Proper Care For A Young Child's Teeth
When a child is first born, they will be toothless. After feedings, it can be helpful to run a damp washcloth over your child's teeth. This will remove any bacteria from building up on the gums. Once teeth begin to show through your child's gums, you should begin to brush them gently with a child's toothbrush or rub them with gauze at the end of the day to remove any bacteria. For parents, it is also important to feed your child responsibly to maintain good oral health. Putting a baby to sleep with a bottle in his or her mouth can be harmful to the baby's teeth. Having them exposed to the sugars in juice or milk for many hours can be damaging to their teeth. In the worst cases, a child's teeth may become so damaged that they must be pulled before the adult teeth come in.
By the time your child is two or three years old, it is appropriate to have them start brushing with toothpaste. For young children, it is important to communicate that they should not swallow the toothpaste. If a child gets in the habit of brushing his or her teeth twice a day, the habit can stay with them for the rest of their lives. It is much easier for them to learn a habit early in life then to try to start later on in life.
How Your Dentist Can Help
Many parents wonder when it is appropriate to first take their child to see the dentist. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends first visiting a dentist when their first tooth appears, or right around their first birthday. For the first few dental visits it can be helpful to visit a pediatric dentist who is specially trained to deal with children. When the child is a little bit older, you can start bringing him or her to your Williamsville dentist.
It is important for parents to remember that dental care for their child should start at an early age. Taking care of a child's primary teeth is important because it can teach the child good oral health habits and the primary teeth set a path for the permanent teeth to follow when they emerge later in life. To learn more about children's oral health, talk with your Buffalo dentist today.
by: Gen Wright
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