Dealing with milk teeth can be a bit of an ordeal, for both the child and first time parent and while the emergence and following life cycle of milk teeth is different for everyone, these following steps are the general order to expect to help you understand what is happening in your child’s mouth.
Tooth eruption
Also known as teething, tooth eruption is the first stage of milk teeth and is the time when the baby teeth are coming through (or ‘erupting’) through the gums. This process will usually begin, at the earliest at 3 months, although the emergence of the first teeth is commonly between 4 and 7 months.
Some babies find this process painless, while others will be irritated by it for short periods. This is normal, however if your baby seems very badly irritated or in considerable discomfort, speak to your doctor or dentist.
Milk teeth loss
Again the age for losing teeth can vary from child to child. Generally girls begin losing their teeth earlier than boys and the age of 6 is the usual time to expect the first tooth loss. This loss will then continue until around the age of 12 or 13.
Many dentists will also recommend that as milk teeth are lost and adult teeth begin to erupt, this is the age at which to really reinforce oral health and independent dental care.
The order at which the teeth will fall can again vary, but generally the teeth that erupted first are also the first to fall out, meaning the bottom front teeth are commonly the first to be lost.
Adult teeth eruption
Because the age range of baby teeth lost ranges over a number of years, your child is going to spend a certain amount of time with both baby and adult teeth.
The first adult tooth to erupt first is one of the front lower teeth, although if different baby teeth fell out first these should obviously be the ones expected first. The first adult teeth should appear soon after the loss of the first baby teeth (around 6 years old) and the final teeth should come through around 13.
Because this period sees the emergence of adult teeth while milk are still present, it is not uncommon for overcrowding and the need for teeth straightening to occur at this time.
It isn’t the easiest of time during your life when it comes to looking after your children’s teeth, but if you love them dearly, you are going to have to teach them how to do things correctly so that their teeth grow strong, true and healthy. Having a good dentist beside you is the first thing you should do once your child starts to teethe and from then on, the lessons begin. Teaching your kids to brush properly is of the utmost importance, as is a good diet and warning them of the dangers of tooth decay. You will nurse them through some choppy oral waters as they grow; their secondary teeth, orthodontic treatments, and if you haven’t had enough of them and kicked them out, their wisdom teeth as well. However, as we should all know, children don’t do rules very well as they like to flaunt the laws you lay down to them and rebel; they will also have a fantastic love affair with everything sweet and sugary, (although to be fair, who doesn’t!). As long as they grasp the importance of brushing their teeth, you might be able to help them avoid tooth decay. However, there is a super ‘ace’ you can play at a particular junction in your kid’s lives: when the secondary teeth have all come through, get them down to the dentists and have them kitted out with dental sealants; these will protect the surfaces of the teeth from bacteria for a good 5 years or so and you will never have to worry about tooth decay. For the best advice about your children’s oral health, telephone Clifton Dental in Bristol- they serve Weston-super-Mare.
If there is anything you should be on board with and prepared for in life, it’s the oral health of your children, and it is something that you will keep an eye on for 16 plus years. You won’t be able to do this on your own either, so you’ll need to find a dentist soon after your kid’s are born to help you on your way. Diet is essential to the growth of teeth, as can be the avoidance of tooth decay; good food will help build up the level of the immune system and keep the body and mouth strong and healthy. Trying to ‘advise’ your kids on the dangers of eating too much sugar from chocolates and other sweets though may be hard, especially when they start to skip off to school, but once your have nursed them through teething and their secondary teeth, you can have the teeth covered with dental sealants, which will fight of the threat of tooth decay for 5-10 years: show your children how to clean their teeth correctly as well- an essential element in their oral growth. One other important factor is being able to finance the treatments your children will need, especially if their teeth need straightening, so hammer out a plan with your dentist from the start. For a more detailed breakdown on oral health in children, contact Clifton Dental in Bristol; not only do they serve the area of Weston-super-Mare, but they are experts in this field.
Looking out for your kid’s oral health is always going to be an ongoing labour of love, but there are ways you can go about making your job easier from the day they are born. Your child will go through a lot of changes through out their lives, but by finding a paediatrician and a dentist from the off will help to support you in all you need to know and help to keep a healthy smile on your child’s face. The first thing you need to be aware of is the problem of tooth decay and infection: as your child teethes, lose their first teeth, get their second teeth and possibly go through some form of orthodontic treatment, the teeth will be vulnerable to problems such as these and you’ll need to learn how to deal with them. Teaching your child how to brush their teeth properly and to be careful of what they eat is a good start. Of course, this is going to be easy to do while you are around, but you can’t monitor them when they go off to school. What you can do however is to kit them out with dental sealants. These can last up to 10 years and it will ensure that the surfaces of their teeth will remain free of harmful acids and bacteria. As they get older, you can also teach them the benefits of flossing and using a mouthwash each time they eat. Hopefully, this will get through to them and they will heed your warnings. There again, you also have your dentist to fall back on if things get out of hand. Clifton dental studio can help with all your worries you may have about caring for your children’s teeth. Although they are based in Bristol, they do serve the Chepstow area.
Dr Gerrard is a Bristol based Cosmetic dentist with many years of experience and is one of only a small number of dentists accredited by The British Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry
It isn’t the easiest of time during your life when it comes to looking after your children’s teeth, but if you love them dearly, you are going to have to teach them how to do things correctly so that their teeth grow strong, true and healthy. Having a good dentist beside you is the first thing you should do once your child starts to teethe and from then on, the lessons begin. Teaching your kids to brush properly is of the utmost importance, as is a good diet and warning them of the dangers of tooth decay. You will nurse them through some choppy oral waters as they grow; their secondary teeth, orthodontic treatments, and if you haven’t had enough of them and kicked them out, their wisdom teeth as well. However, as we should all know, children don’t do rules very well as they like to flaunt the laws you lay down to them and rebel; they will also have a fantastic love affair with everything sweet and sugary, (although to be fair, who doesn’t!). As long as they grasp the importance of brushing their teeth, you might be able to help them avoid tooth decay. However, there is a super ‘ace’ you can play at a particular junction in your kid’s lives: when the secondary teeth have all come through, get them down to the dentists and have them kitted out with dental sealants; these will protect the surfaces of the teeth from bacteria for a good 5 years or so and you will never have to worry about tooth decay. For the best advice about your children’s oral health, telephone Clifton Dental in Bristol- they serve Weston-super-Mare.
If there is anything you should be on board with and prepared for in life, it’s the oral health of your children, and it is something that you will keep an eye on for 16 plus years. You won’t be able to do this on your own either, so you’ll need to find a dentist soon after your kid’s are born to help you on your way. Diet is essential to the growth of teeth, as can be the avoidance of tooth decay; good food will help build up the level of the immune system and keep the body and mouth strong and healthy. Trying to ‘advise’ your kids on the dangers of eating too much sugar from chocolates and other sweets though may be hard, especially when they start to skip off to school, but once your have nursed them through teething and their secondary teeth, you can have the teeth covered with dental sealants, which will fight of the threat of tooth decay for 5-10 years: show your children how to clean their teeth correctly as well- an essential element in their oral growth. One other important factor is being able to finance the treatments your children will need, especially if their teeth need straightening, so hammer out a plan with your dentist from the start. For a more detailed breakdown on oral health in children, contact Clifton Dental in Bristol; not only do they serve the area of Weston-super-Mare, but they are experts in this field.
