Dental decay is the most common disease in children worldwide, and it
is completely preventable. As a parent, it is important to know good oral
practices and the first signs of tooth decay in your child to prevent this from
happening. A kid-friendly dentist will tell you that healthy oral hygiene
habits in your children start as early as infancy with bottle feeding and
continue until their permanent teeth come in. Paediatric dental decay can have
tremendous consequences. If left untreated, it can lead to ailments such as
malnourishment and bacterial infection.
Oral Health Habits leading to
Dental Carries and Decay
- Nursing Bottle Syndrome: A common
practice is to give a warm bottle for babies to fall asleep at night.
Unfortunately, this practice causes a lot of damage to your child's teeth. This
is because any liquid containing sugar, including milk or formula, will
contribute to the development of dental caries. It's the sugar that feed the
growth of bacteria on the teeth and ultimately degrades the teeth, which can
lead to decay.
- Decayed or Missing Baby Teeth: Baby
teeth serve as the blueprint for adult teeth. When dental caries cause teeth to
decay, this will impact the growth and alignment of the permanent teeth to
follow. Misaligned teeth may prove it difficult for the child to maintain
adequate oral hygiene practices, which can increase risk of tooth decay.
- Thumb Sucking: Although this can be a
comforting habit to infants and children, it is important to remember that once
permanent teeth start to emerge (around five years of age), prolonged thumb
sucking can cause misalignment in the jaw and roof of the mouth.
- Poor Nutrition: Sugary drinks and
snacks, especially sticky snacks such as granola bars, raisins, and other
candies, cling to the tooth surface more easily and increase the risk of
cavities and tooth decay. Instead, ensure that your children eat a variety of
vegetables and fruit and clean teeth after every meal and snack.
How to Prevent Tooth Decay in
Children
- Regular
dental checkups: Children should start their regular dental visits by
one year of age. This is to identify any existing damage to teeth in
addition to education regarding proper oral care habits for kids. In
addition to dental checkups, make sure to check your child's teeth
regularly for brown spots close to the gum line; this is the first sign of
demineralization. In other words, this is what happens when calcium and
phosphate leach out – a sign of tooth decay.
- Good
Nutrition Habits: Excessive intake of sugary snacks and drinks
increases the risk of bacterial growth and subsequent tooth decay. Focus
on feeding kids a variety of foods from all four food groups. Clean teeth
after meals and snacks that contain large amounts of starchy foods.
- Supervised
Brushing: It is important to supervise your child as they practise
oral hygiene habits until they are capable to do so on their own. Fluoridated
toothpastes are recommended to prevent future cavities for all ages. Babies' and toddlers' teeth can be
cleaned by parents using a pea-sized amount of toothpaste. Use non-fluoridated children’s toothpaste
until they can spit properly
By
ensuring checkups at your family’s kid-friendly dentist remain consistent as
well as other proper oral care habits, you can prevent dental caries and tooth
decay in your children, setting them up for success later in life.