I remember when my eldest son, Asa, grew his first little baby tooth back up in Barrow, Alaska. He used to eat all traditional Native Inupiaq foods at potlucks we’d attend and he was better able to tear into his muktuk (black frozen whale skin and pink blubber) after he grew his first few teeth. As a dentist, I knew that those first teeth erupting into his mouth needed proper brushing. But I also realized this was definitely not common knowledge, since I would see so many infants who needlessly suffered from reddened, irritated gums and early cavities on their first few teeth.
Let’s talk about those very early baby teeth and how you can help prevent early cavities and preserve beautiful toothy grins for the littlest members of your family. Let’s take “baby steps” together!
BABY STEP ONE – START BRUSHING!
Start brushing when the first tooth erupts into the mouth – or even earlier if you want to get a head start. You can get your baby used to the feeling of toothbrush bristles in the mouth even before the first tooth surfaces. Choose a small head, very soft “infant” brush or “baby’s first brush.” These are designed to fit easier in an infant’s mouth and the bristles are soft enough to brush gums – even if there are no teeth. Make circular motions with the toothbrush around the teeth and the gums. We teach a technique called “lift the lip,” where you use one hand to lift up your child’s upper lip and the other hand to brush the teeth. That helps you get to the hard-to-reach areas on the upper front teeth by the gums where milk sugar and formula sugar can come to rest and cause cavities.
BABY STEP TWO – FIRST DENTAL VISIT BY AGE ONE YEAR
The first baby dental visit is a 90% educational and about 10% physical examination of the teeth. The dental team talks through a survey with the child’s parent, grandparent or caretaker and completes a risk assessment of that child’s likelihood for cavities. Factors that can increase your child’s risk for decay are having people with active cavities in the household, skipping regular brushing, allowing on-demand access to milk or formula and having a tendency for weak enamel in the family. Factors that can protect your child and reduce the risk for decay are regular brushing, getting active cavities treated for other household family members and using a fluoride toothpaste in the recommended amount – which is just a smear (just a tiny bit that you can see on the toothbrush) for kids who cannot spit toothpaste into the sink.
The physical examination part of the first baby visit is very simple. An experienced pediatric dentist can look around your baby’s mouth and check for areas of weak enamel and early childhood cavities. We look at the gingiva or gum tissue for redness and can see if brushing needs to be improved. We also look for any abnormal tissues and can let you know if there may be a tongue or lip tie, or eruption cyst over a newly growing molar. We want parents to become educated and familiar with their baby’s mouth so that you are more aware of what can lead to problems.
BABY STEP THREE – EVALUATE THE CAVITY-CAUSING POTENTIAL OF FOODS
As a frequent multi-cart grocery shopper, I’ve seen first-hand how many sugary, cavity-causing products are marketed directly to parents of very young children. I’m talking about anything GUMMY. If I could only give one nugget of advice after 20+ years as a dentist, I would say this – gummies cause cavities. They are the perfect evil combination of sugar and stickiness that wedge themselves into the nooks and cracks of back teeth and provide a bounty of sugary-substrate nutrition for bacteria, which produce acid that eats away at the enamel and causes tooth destruction and baby tooth decay.
Parents and grocery shoppers can take an extra step to see if the snack product you are purchasing that looks healthy, fruity and maybe even organic, in fact contains sugar and is sticky. If you can choose another less sugary, less sticky snack, your baby’s teeth will be forever grateful!
Spring forward with a plan to prevent cavities for your infants and young children. We can all take small steps towards a lifetime of healthy smiles for the children in our lives. Your child’s dentist can help you come up with a more focused cavity-prevention game plan based upon your child’s specific needs.
-by Dr. Mandy Ashley
About Our Dentists: Dr. Mandy Ashley and Dr. Madison Galloway are Board Certified Pediatric Dentists proud to serve the communities of Bowling Green, Hopkinsville, and Glasgow! We look forward to sharing our vision of excellent comprehensive dental care that is fun for children and people with special healthcare needs with your family.
SKY Pediatric Dentistry has been providing dental care to children and adults with special needs since 2013. As board-certified specialists in dentistry for children, our team strives to make going to the dentist as fun as possible while maintaining high-quality treatment and preventative measures. We tailor treatment plans to each child and offer a wide range of treatment options, including sedation, in-office general anesthesia, and also hospital-based dentistry. With over 25 YEARS of doctor experience, SKY Pediatric Dentistry is a great choice for children’s dental care in Bowling Green, Hopkinsville, and Glasgow!
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