Every kid is at risk of tooth decay. The outer layer of teeth, called enamel, is much thinner and softer on the baby teeth. That’s why they are more prone to great tooth decay. The good thing is that it is highly preventable by regular brushing, but not everybody follows it.
Here’s a new article that will explain everything you need to know as early as possible to prevent tooth decay or decay patterns in your baby.
Causes of Tooth Decay in Babies
It’s pretty simple, the main cause of tooth decay is Streptococcus Mutants.
They have a high ability to survive in a mouth environment. They are also active at eating the sugars and converting them into acid, which will damage the teeth’ enamel. This acid will also remove all the minerals inside your baby’s teeth. They can also produce new bacteria and keep the process going.
These bacteria will get stuck between the baby’s teeth in the early years. They will lose their nutrients, so it turns into an acid, and this acid attacks the enamel of your baby’s teeth. The enamel will slowly dissolve and turn into a cavity. If not taken care of properly, this cavity will eventually create a hole in your baby’s tooth.
When you see the signs of tooth decay on a child’s teeth, it is time to visit the children dentist immediately. If you don’t do anything about it because of too much thinking or waiting for tomorrow, you might ruin your baby’s teeth forever.
Signs of Tooth Decay
Here are a few of the signs of tooth decay in kids:
- The first symptom you might notice is a white spot on the front teeth. This white spot is a result of how acidic teeth become. So, make sure to brush and clean your baby’s teeth with the perfect toothpaste twice a day.
- Another common symptom you will see might be an odor coming from your kid’s mouth, which can be embarrassing. It’s something that you don’t want to experience because it will make him more uncomfortable than he already is, so get it checked quickly as soon as possible.
- One more sign that you might see is the bad breath or some bad smell coming from your baby’s mouth. You can’t ignore this because there are so many causes for it. The bacteria can have built up in between his teeth, and that’s why he has a bad smell, but again, it doesn’t mean that your baby is all okay; it doesn’t mean there’s nothing wrong with him.
How to Prevent Tooth Decay in Babies
There are several ways about how to prevent tooth decay in your baby, and here are a few of those:
Brushing twice a day
This is always a good habit that your baby needs to get involved in at least two times a day. Once before going to sleep and the other time just after waking up.
To make sure that your baby’s teeth are brushing, he needs to perform it twice a day for about 2 minutes each time.
Avoid sugary foods
As far as you know, this is an important thing you might do if you want your kids to avoid tooth decay. These sugary foods will feed the bacteria and multiply very quickly. So be careful with different types of candies and desserts that might tempt your child and keep him away from them.
Good feeding habits help to prevent tooth decay
As a parent, you are the role model in your child’s life. So, you need to set a good example for him. They will eventually imitate what you do and the way that you eat. What does that mean? It means that if they see their parents are eating unhealthy foods and candies all day long, they will probably do the same thing. You need to demonstrate to your kid how important healthy foods are for healthy teeth.
Frequent Dental visits
If you have a kid, you must know the importance of dental visits. When your baby is about one-year or older, schedule a dental appointment. Children are more exposed to tooth decay than adults because they have more teeth in their mouth, and they also like to put anything on their mouths which can be dangerous at times.
How are cavities in kids treated?
A dentist’s treatment to treat a cavity depends on its size and how deep it is.
If you wonder what the best way to fix tooth decay is, you must know that several ways vary from case to case. The main goals of all child dentists are to remove all cavities and restore your teeth’ original shape and beauty. Some of them will use fillings or crowns; others might perform a root canal, so be aware of different procedures.
When you can’t treat it immediately, your dentist will probably prescribe an antibiotic for your baby to reduce the infection level in the mouth area.
New Procedures
- Only a dentist can perform these procedures, and they might be a little painful for your baby, but they are important to save his tooth. That’s why you should ask the doctor what kind of cavities your baby has as far as whether it is a decayed or an infected one.
- If your child has deep cavities, then the best thing would be to get root canal treatment to fix them and prevent any possibility of more cavities appearing. Still, again, before scheduling that, you should do some research on whether it is really necessary or not.
- Root canals must be done on kids with at least two healthy teeth in their mouth before proceeding with any procedure. The root canal procedure will be done under anesthetic, and your baby needs to wear a mouthguard while being in bed while the procedure is being done.
- Crowns are one of the best procedures that a kids dentist can perform on young kids because it’s versatile and can work for both decayed and healthy teeth.
- Ask your dentist about their treatments for kids so that you will know how to treat them properly.
Wrapping Up!
Tooth decay can be dangerous for kids, so if you see one or your kid has signs of tooth decay, you should definitely look at what they need to do. They should visit the dentist and fix it so that it doesn’t affect their health or smile.
If you are searching “dental pediatrics near me“, look no further than Dr. Yasmin. She is one of the best pediatric dentists in Dubai to treat kids’ dental issues. Moreover, she also treats kids with special needs like spectrum autism. Get in touch now!