The first few years of your child’s life are a flurry of activity when it comes to their oral health. They will see a set of teeth come in, then fall out, then another set of teeth will erupt. How and when they erupt and how healthy they are can affect your child’s health for a lifetime.
Regular dental checkups should start at an early age. These checkups will include pediatric teeth cleanings, but they’re about more than clean teeth. It also allows The Center for Pediatric Dental Health to monitor your child’s developing teeth and jaws, keeping them on track for a lifetime of excellent oral health.
At What Age Should My Child Start Dental Cleanings?
Your child should see a dentist as soon as their first tooth erupts. Deep teeth cleaning may not be necessary (although we will polish that one new tooth!), but we will also give your baby a thorough examination. Even the eruption of the first tooth will provide us with an idea of how the other teeth are developing.
Once that first tooth erupts, likely a lower central incisor, others will follow in quick succession. Regular dental visits should take place every six months. In the time between that first tooth and their next dental visit, your child should have four and possibly up to eight teeth!
Why Dental Cleanings Matter for Kids
Professional teeth cleaning is important at any age to help prevent cavities. You may think that kids’ teeth cleaning doesn’t matter much for baby teeth, since they fall out anyway. But baby teeth are incredibly important for your child.
Baby teeth serve several purposes. They help your child as they move from milk or formula to soft then solid foods. Your baby needs to learn how to bite and chew properly, and they need their deciduous teeth to do that.
Baby teeth also play an important part in speech development. Several sounds are formed by the tongue’s placement against the teeth. Without those teeth, your child could develop a lisp or other speech impediment.
Finally, milk teeth serve as placeholders for the permanent teeth, which begin to erupt soon after the baby teeth start falling out around age 6. The permanent tooth follows the path of the baby tooth. If a baby tooth falls out or is removed prematurely, the permanent tooth may not erupt where it should, or it may erupt crooked.
How to Prevent Cavities
Pediatric dental cleanings are a great way to help prevent cavities, but they also provide an opportunity to identify cavities that may be forming. We also check your child for the beginning stages of gum disease.
It’s not easy for small children to brush their teeth well. It takes time to learn the proper methods, which is why it’s so important for you to help your child brush their teeth each day. They can get cavities in baby teeth just as they can in permanent teeth.
Dental cleanings help prevent cavities and maintain your child’s teeth and gums’ health. They remove bacteria and provide fluoride protection to strengthen their tooth enamel. We can also identify potential problems, such as whether your child may be prone to cavities due to genetic conditions or poor oral hygiene habits.
We can also recommend the best ways to clean your child’s teeth at home, from the best toothbrush for their age to when you should start using fluoride toothpaste.
Regular dental cleanings and checkups can stop problems before they start.
What Happens During a Professional Teeth Cleaning?
Our first priority during your child’s checkup is to make them feel as comfortable as possible. We love working with kids, and we want your child to love visiting us! Once your child feels relaxed, we’ll begin their examination and treatment.
We explain what we’re doing to both you and your child, so neither of you has any concerns. We then examine your child’s teeth, gums, and jaws using digital imaging, if possible. This will tell us how their teeth are developing both above and below the gum line.
Next, we clean their teeth and check for any signs of weak enamel, cavities, or gum disease. We will address any issues we identify and recommend measures to prevent further damage. Then, we help you set up the next regular checkup.
Our goal is to build your child’s confidence with each checkup, so that they never fear visiting the dentist. We want your child to leave with a healthy, polished smile, and you to go with peace of mind!
When to Visit the Dentist Between Appointments
Is there ever a need to visit the dentist between regular visits? Certain circumstances may require special dental visits.
We encourage you to visit if your child is involved in an accident that results in an injury to their mouth. Even if they don’t knock out a tooth that’s erupted, they could cause damage to their gums, jaws, or even the teeth that haven’t erupted.
We would also like to examine your child to check for any signs of dental or gum problems, such as cavities or gum disease. If your child’s gums turn red, swell, or bleed, this could indicate the start of gum disease or another problem. We may recommend more frequent visits if we identify issues with your child’s teeth.
Contact us if your child’s tooth falls out too early. We may need to place a spacer to preserve the space for the permanent tooth. This will help prevent orthodontics problems later.
Finally, give us a call if you notice anything unusual with either your child’s teeth, their oral hygiene habits or their eating habits. Younger children may not be able to express discomfort in the same way we can, but changes in methods or habits could indicate a problem.
Regular Pediatric Dental Checkups in Sicklerville, NJ
Teaching your child good oral habits early is crucial for maintaining good oral health, which in turn is essential for overall well-being. The Center for Pediatric Dental Health cares for children in the Sicklerville, NJ, Woolrich Township, NJ, and Mount Laurel, NJ, areas.
Schedule an appointment with us as soon as your child’s first tooth erupts. The Center for Pediatric Dental Health is here for you and your child as their mouths develop. Together, we can teach your child great oral hygiene habits that will serve them for a lifetime!
