Believe it or not, baby teeth hold a lot of importance in oral health. They keep the tooth sockets open with enough space for all of the child’s adult teeth. Children use teeth to help them speak and eat food. How soon should your child see the dentist? Between the eruption of the first tooth and baby’s first birthday is the best time to take your infant to see the dentist for a primary visit.

The alignment of baby teeth affects adult teeth

The way your child’s teeth grow in as a baby can give the dentist a good indication of how the adult teeth will sit. If something is wrong now, then he or she can suggest treatments at the earliest stage. Giving your child a better smile may only require some preventative care.

Adult teeth can get infections while still in the gums

Oral infections can do more than cause pain and discomfort. These issues can penetrate the gums and get into tooth roots, jawbones, the blood, and adult teeth. Infections left alone can become a huge problem that causes damage to teeth in the gums before they even surface. Any swollen gums, redness, irritation, or fever with tooth pain warrants a call to the dentist for a checkup.

X-rays during youth checkups help dentists see more than baby teeth

One important tool dentists can use to see the condition of adult teeth in children is an x-ray machine. This equipment lets the oral health care professional look deep into the gums and spot problems with infection or tooth rot when children are very young. Professional dentists that offer pediatric services, like the Central Dental Centre, are better able to analyze the results from a child’s examination pictures. The pictures give the dentist a baseline to compare future studies against as the child grows up and loses baby teeth.

Creating good oral health care habits for a lifetime

Taking care of an infant’s teeth is the best way to get little ones to grow up knowing how to brush, floss, and see the dentist regularly. Making brushing a fun experience is a helpful way to keep children from fighting the routine. Use a timer to make sure you spend the full two minutes brushing. Oral health rinses are fun ways to encourage children. You can also use non-food rewards like extra game time or an outing to boost kid’s enthusiasm and keep them on target.

One of the better ways to help your child form excellent oral care routines is by letting them see you brush regularly and going to see your dentist twice a year. Take them to the dentist to learn how better to care for baby teeth. Remember, you are building habits to prevent a lifetime of tooth pain and loss.