Childrens Dentistry
Good oral health starts early
Setting good oral health habits in childhood plays an important role in the dental well-being of your child as they grow. Healthy baby teeth are critical to comfortable eating, appearance, speech, facial growth and social well-being.
Here are our recommendations:
Caring for baby teeth
Brushing should begin as soon as the first tooth erupts.
First 18 months – Brushing without toothpaste
18 months+ – Brushing by parents with a grain size toothpaste
3 years + – brushing by parents with Pea-sized toothpaste
Bottle Feeding
For infants, breast milk or infant formula should be the main drink. When your toddler has reduced breastfeeding or formula, full fat cow’s milk and water are recommended as the best drinks. Water should be the main drink as they grow. Fruit juice, cordial, soft drinks and flavoured milk are not needed. To reduce the occurrence of early tooth decay, it is crucial that your child’s bottle and sippy cup only contains milk and water. You should avoid sweet drinks.
Protecting the Baby Teeth
Fluoridated toothpaste
Daily brushing with fluoride-containing toothpaste plays a pivotal role in preventing tooth decay.
Fluoride varnish
Twice a year application of specialised fluoride varnish by the dentist reduces decay occurrence by one-third.
Fissure sealants
Most often decay starts in the grooves of the back teeth. Fissure sealant is a protective coating that stops food and bacteria from getting into these grooves.
Tooth mousse
Tooth mousse is a special cream with calcium that is applied to the teeth daily. It helps to repair early tooth decay and reduces its occurrence.
Silver Diamide Fluoride
SDF liquid is painted on the decaying area of the tooth to stop it from progressing.
Dummies & Thumb sucking
Continued use of dummies or thumb sucking can have detrimental effects on the growth and development of the jaw and face. Such habits in toddlers are normal. However, as they grow older, these habits need to be discouraged. Dummy and thumb sucking can result in narrow palate, narrow upper jaw, smaller lower jaw, dental crowding and open bite. Also, it can impact nasal breathing. Initially, children should be encouraged to stop the habit with rewards and praises.
An early visit to the dentist
An early visit to the dentist is an important part of caring for your child’s dental well-being. At the first visit, we focus on: