According to the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry at 12 months, your baby is old enough to visit the dentist. Cavities are a common concern with children that is why it is important to take your child to the dentist regularly. 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one in four children have tooth decay by the time they enter kindergarten. Yet cavities are preventable with proper infant oral care that continues throughout childhood and the teen years.

You will want to put your baby on your lap, facing away from you. Brush the teeth from behind, making sure to support your baby’s head. When you brush, focus your efforts between the gums and teeth—that’s the most important area. Consult with your dentist about frequency, and if you should add flossing to your child’s routine.

Once your baby’s teeth start coming in, you may want to transition from the washcloth to a baby toothbrush and a toothpaste. If you do use toothpaste make sure it is still safe of babies. One example would be Tom’s of Maine’s new toddler training toothpaste which is specially formulated for age 3-24 months and it is safe if swallowed.  

Once your child reaches the age of two and can spit you may want to transition to another type of toothpaste. Remember that when it comes to toothpaste a small pea size amount is all you need.

Instead of a bag of chips serve cheese with lunch or as a snack, especially cheddar, Monterey Jack, Swiss, and other aged cheeses which help to trigger the flow of saliva. Saliva helps to wash food particles away from teeth

Fruits and vegetables: Try offering more fruits and vegetables as a snack instead of sugary treats. The best type of fruits and vegetables to offer would be those containing a high volume of water, such as pears, melons, celery, and cucumbers. Limit banana and raisin consumption as these contain concentrated sugar or if you serve these fruits, try to brush your child’s teeth immediately after they are eaten.

Question: Why should I take my toddler to the dentist when his baby teeth will just fall out anyway? I just wondering because my parents never took me to see a dentist until I was a teen with adult teeth.

Answer: It is true that our primary teeth eventually, but their health is still very important to our oral health over the long term. Once a baby tooth starts to decay, the bacteria in there, progresses pretty quickly, seeping through the tooth and going to the bone and potentially causing dental infections that can even be fatal. Sure that is the worst consequence. But even if that does not happen, if bacteria lurk in the baby teeth, the enamel for the adult teeth may not be formed properly and they can be permanently damaged.

Question: My son is 18 months of age and I been told he should see a dentist for a regular dental check up. However, I am not sure if he can just go to our family dentist or does he have to see a pediatric dentist.  

Answer: This is a common question for parents to ask. For the same reason you do not take your child to your own internist, you take her to a pediatrician. Children are not miniature adults. Their bodies are very different, and so are their teeth. A pediatric dentist has expertise in those differences.

Question: I have a two year old and just wondering about what age should he be able to brush his own teeth?

Answer: It can take many years before a child develops the fine motor coordination need to do a good job at brushing their teeth. Some dentist advises that parent brushes or help a child to brush their teeth until the child can neatly write his or her own name. You will need to use your own judgment but consider between ages 6 and 8 as the time for your child to take on the job of keeping their teeth clean and healthy.

By the time your baby is six months of age, your dentist should assess the likelihood of your baby having future dental problems. This may include a dental exam of the mother and her dental history, as the condition of her teeth can often predict her child’s teeth.  Be sure your child sees a dentist after the first primary teeth appear. After your first visit, schedule regular visits every six months or as your dentist recommends.   

Experts recommend that your baby see a dentist no latter then 12 months of age. Babies with dental problems caused by injury, disease, or a developmental problem should be seen by a children’s (pediatric) dentist right away. If these dental problems are not limited to the surfaces of the teeth, your baby should also be seen by a children’s doctor (pediatrician) or your family doctor.

Your baby’s first teeth usually begin to erupt through the gums at about six months of age, although the timing will vary among children. All of the 20 primary teeth should come in between the ages of six months and three years. Your child will lose his or her primary teeth between the ages of six and eleven.   

Your child’s first permanent teeth  usually erupt behind the primary teeth at about age six. The last permanent teeth usually erupt between the ages of 12 and 21.

It is important to understand that a baby’s dental care really starts with his or her mother’s healthy pregnancy, because baby teeth begin to form before birth. If you are pregnant, make sure to eat a balanced, nutritious diet and get an adequate amount of vitamins and minerals as advise by your doctor. Do not avoid your dentist, sadly too many pregnant women do not go to the dentist and seeing a dentist while pregnant is important. Pregnant women have a higher risk of gum disease and therefore should see their dentist to maintain their oral health while pregnant

Sugary candy food texture can create issues for your teeth. Sticky substances seem to find their way in-between your teeth and along your gum line. The bacteria in your mouth interacts with the sugars to weaken your tooth enamel. Therefore avoid such candies as toffee and anything gummy (such as gummy bears) If you do eat this type of treat be extra diligent with your flossing and brushing afterwards.

Wine may get better with age but did you know it also ages your teeth? With high acidic content wine start to wear down on your teeth’s enamel almost immediately. Wine also stains teeth and can cause dry mouth. 

Although it can be hard to avoid flour-based, white starchy foods, for good dental health try limiting your refined carbohydrates. Refined carbohydrates are correlated with increased inflammation, which in turn causes complications like gingivitis.

Although one of America’s favorite morning and afternoon beverages may be coffee and tea, they have compounds called tannins, which can cause unsightly stains and discoloring of your teeth. Therefore to avoid staining your teeth try and limited the amount of coffee and tea drinking throughout the day.  

If you are going to be drinking coffee and tea do so with a straw to limited contact with your teeth. Avoid slowly drinking these types of drinks, it can be fun to hang out at the local coffee house and babying the one cup of coffee during your hour or more stay but it is not so fun for your teeth.

Trust: Trust is always a big issue and you need to know whether or not you can trust your dentist and the advise on dental care you are receiving. Does your dentist answer your questions fully to where you understand the services he or she is suggesting to you.

When major dental care is required, sometimes you may want a second opinion to verify all the dental services be suggested. That is normally and is encouraged among dentist.

However not all dentist will advise the same exact treatment. So when comparing the two opinions, if you have questions about why the two do not match up inquire into it with your dentist before just thinking one is a bad dentist. Cost may also be a factor.

If you have dental insurance you may want to make sure that your dental insurance plan would cover for a second option. Some dental plans may not cover for additional services already done. If so you would want to know the cost ahead of time to make sure it is something you can afford to have done.

Many times when it comes to your health getting a second opinion is often advised. But what about dental care and treatment when should you get a second opinion and why. Here are a few tips that may help you when thinking about getting a second dental opinion.

Do your research before deciding whether you need a second opinion. If you are not sure what your dentist is advising go on line and do a simple search for information on what your dental needs is. See if by doing so it helps you to understand and that it matches up with what your dentist is telling you. Then before going to another dentist if there are still things you do not understand call your dentist and discuss your concerns. If you are still left unsatisfied then go get that second opinion

According to data from the US Centers for Disease Control, base on five year period ending in 2004, it found that 28% of all children age two to five have had some tooth decayed, and 23% of those children were not receiving treatment for  tooth decay.

This type of tooth decay is known as early childhood caries or ECC, and is the most common cause of chronic disease.  ECC can be caused by, not keeping up with basic dental care of children’s teeth. As well as economic issues of the family in providing for dental care. Another factor of ECC is toxic stress which can interrupt the neurodevelopment of a child, therefore making them prone to infection, heart disease, diabetes, stroke and preterm delivery. Talk to your family dentist make sure you go over the way to minimize your child risks of ECC and learn proper dental care for you baby.

Proper preventive dental care for babies start with the parents. In the past many people did not feel that baby teeth were all that important. Not fully understanding the roll that baby teeth play in a child development.

Baby teeth serves many functions. such as allowing for proper jaw growth, baby teeth assist in the formation of proper speech and they are space savers for adult teeth to come in correctly. Untreated tooth decay in baby teeth can lead to premature loss of teeth as well as effect the development of adult teeth. Parents must start good oral health habits for their babies right from the start. Make sure to clean your baby’s gums even before emerging baby teeth.

When baby teeth start to come in make sure to brush and clean both teeth and gums. If you are not sure the proper way to do so then take your baby to see a dentist. The dentist can show you proper way to clean and take care of your child teeth and gums. The days of children not seeing a dentist until they are two or older are long gone. It is best advised that you should take your child to see a dentist when they cut their first tooth or by their first birthday.

With the continue rising of healthcare cost more employers have stop offering dental care benefits to their employees. Due to this only 57% of Americans are covered by a dental plan compared with more the 85% who have medical insurance. This according to the latest in Healthcare Transparency Index from Change Healthcare. The index is showing a concerning trend that employees and their dependents are skipping regular dental visits and neglecting their dental health care. That women were more likely to receive dental care, averaging 1.31 visits per year versus only 1.11 for men. The index also found that seniors age 60 and older were the most likely to receive dental care, compared with young adults ages 21 to 30 representing the least likely.