Preventive Dentistry for Children: Building Healthy Habits for a Lifetime

Preventive dentistry is dental care that focuses on maintaining good oral health. It also involves cultivating good dental habits that help keep your mouth healthy. Pediatric preventive dentistry in Redding sets the foundation for a lifetime of excellent oral health. Read on to learn about preventive dentistry for children.

What Is the Most Common Dental Condition in Children?

Tooth decay is the most common oral health condition affecting children. It affects kids of all ages, including babies who are breastfeeding or using a bottle. Untreated tooth decay causes pain that prevents the child from eating, playing, speaking, or learning.

Babies who take breast milk, juice, or formula from a bottle are susceptible to cavities. The sugars in these drinks combine with oral bacteria to form plaque. Since their teeth constantly come into contact with plaque, the acids erode the tooth enamel causing decay. The problem is prevalent in babies who take a bottle to bed.

Children who are not using the bottle can also get cavities. It is because they snack frequently, particularly on sugary treats. In addition, most kids below six cannot clean their teeth properly. Others are too busy to brush their teeth for the recommended two minutes. All these factors make tooth cavities the most common dental issue in children.

What Are Common Pediatric Dental Procedures?

Children’s mouths are affected by various issues. These impact their teeth and gums’ health, appearance, and function. Children can have caries, dental injuries, and habits like thumb sucking and tongue thrusting. They can also experience early tooth loss, teeth misalignment, and gingivitis.

Fortunately, a pediatric dentist near you can treat these issues, improving the child’s dental health and function. They offer various pediatric dental procedures to correct these issues. The most common approaches are featured below.

1. Dental Cleanings

Children have difficulty maintaining proper oral hygiene. Although you may help them at home, they need to visit a dentist for professional cleanings. The dentist will also teach them how to brush and floss properly. Teeth cleaning sessions are scheduled at least twice annually. They are comfortable for kids of all ages.

2. Dental Sealants

They are translucent plastic materials applied on the tooth surface to prevent decay. Dental sealants fill deep pits and grooves on teeth to keep plaque from accumulating. This helps prevent decay and makes it easy for kids to clean their back teeth properly. The dental sealant procedure is suitable for all kids. It is fast, straightforward, and painless.

3. Mouth Guards

Children who engage in high-contact sports are prone to dental injuries. During the game, they can sustain a broken, chipped, or fallen-out tooth. In addition, they can get cuts on their lips, tongue, or inner cheeks. The Redding dentist helps prevent dental injuries by providing custom-made mouthguards for kids. They are worn over teeth to cushion and protect the child’s mouth.

4. Fluoride treatments

Fluoride is a mineral that strengthens teeth helping to prevent cavities. It also enables the tooth enamel to resist the action of plaque and acids. The dentist applies fluoride to children’s teeth in a simple, quick, and painless procedure.

5. Space maintainers

Issues like tooth decay and dental trauma can lead to the premature loss of baby tooth. When this occurs, adjacent teeth shift into the gap. Therefore, the child’s permanent teeth will be misaligned. The pediatric dentist will prevent this by fixing space maintainers on the gap in the socket. They remain in place until the new tooth starts erupting.

What Are the Benefits of Preventive Dental Care for Children?

Pediatric preventive dentistry has numerous advantages. Below are the benefits of taking your child to Shasta Kids Dentistry for preventive dental care.

1. The treatments cut the risk of decay and subsequent problems like gum disease and tooth loss.
2. The dentist teaches the children and parents proper oral hygiene practices. This helps them maintain healthier smiles.
3. Your child gets healthy, beautiful smiles that make them feel confident when interacting with others.
4. The dentist will help prevent misalignment and malocclusion issues.
5. They save you the money you would have spent treating cavities or misalignments.
6. The dentist can anticipate genetic oral health issues during the exams. They will treat them before they develop or become hard to treat.
7. Taking care of your child’s teeth as they develop helps them remain healthy and beautiful even in adulthood.