At Bayou Dental Group, we’re a family practice dedicated to building healthy smiles for a lifetime.
That means helping parents encourage healthy dental habits with their kids early so they grow up knowing the value of strong teeth and gums.
We’re honoring Children’s Dental Health Month by raising awareness about certain issues that affect your kid’s teeth so you can move forward armed with the facts.
Children’s Dental Health Issues You Should Know About
Children need to learn healthy dental habits early in life so when they reach adulthood, making oral health a priority will already be second nature.
*Extended Exposure To Sugar
You know that sugar is bad for your teeth.
But what isn’t as widely known is that the length of time your teeth and gums are exposed to sugar matters, too.
With children, it’s pretty common to fill up a bottle or sippy cup of a sweet drink like fruit juice. Often, little ones will carry that drink around for several hours, and even fall asleep while sucking on the cup.
This can increase the likelihood of tooth decay in children, even if they’ve only had a couple of teeth erupt at that point.
It’s better to let them drink from their sippy cup for a short time rather than let them sip it all afternoon or evening.
*Prevalence Of Tooth Decay
Surprisingly, cavities are the most common chronic illness in children, in front of other health conditions like asthma and obesity.
What’s most troubling about this fact is what tooth decay can mean for your child if it’s not treated. Not only will they develop cavities, but they’re primed for a long line of issues like dental pain and discomfort, infected teeth, and tooth sensitivity, just to name a few.
*Lost Instructional Time
According to a national survey, kids at that time lost more than 51 million hours of classroom instruction every year because of oral health related problems.
Studies in the last decade draw similar conclusions about a connection between poor dental health and missed school.
It’s not a stand-alone factor for school absences, of course, but it does suggest that your child’s smile isn’t the only thing that’s affected by dental problems.
Their education is likely to suffer as well.
*Untreated Cavities
When decay is given enough time to ravage a tooth, small holes called cavities will result. Ordinarily, a dentist can keep that from happening, or at least catch and treat cavities early, thanks to regular dental exams.
But a recent CDC report revealed that nearly 20% of kids between the ages of 2 and 19 have untreated cavities!
*Poor Oral Hygiene
We often hear myths circulating about how it’s not all that important to care for your child’s teeth and gums. After all, their baby teeth are going to come out anyway, so how important is diligent brushing and flossing really?
While it’s a fair question, the presumption that your child’s oral hygiene doesn’t matter puts them at risk for problems.
Even the smallest amount of decay can set off a chain reaction of future dental problems. If a baby tooth falls sooner than it should or has to be removed because of decay, it could affect the way their adult teeth come in.
In fact, in some cases, it could prevent their adult teeth from coming in at all.
To ensure their adult teeth come in strong and healthy, it’s important to keep your child’s baby teeth strong and healthy.
Schedule Your Child’s Appointment
Bayou Dental Group is a kid-friendly practice led by child-approved dentist, Dr. Finley.
He and our team know how important it is to earn your child’s trust. When they feel comfortable here, they will attribute positive feelings to professional dental care as they grow.
Along with fostering a fun environment for kids, we also know how to detect and treat the problems we discussed in today’s blog.
Prevention is a priority we take very seriously in our Monroe, LA dental office. It’s why we make sure cleanings and exams are thorough and preventive treatments are effective.
Come and celebrate Children’s Dental Health Month us by schedule your child’s next appointment.
Call Bayou Dental Group today at 318-323-9303 or fill out our online form.