Tooth decay has been rated as one of the commonest oral health problems. However, people of all ages, both adults and children, are prone to tooth decay, but in the current day very young children are especially vulnerable. There is a specific type of severe decay described as baby bottle tooth decay.

 

What is the reason behind children’s vulnerability to tooth decay?

 

  • The development stage of children between infancy and early childhood entails a lot of exploration, and the immediate world around them is so exciting, which puts them under the risk of many hazards to their health. Most of them will snack on sweets and other sugary foods with little thought of proper oral hygiene afterward.
  • During their most active ages, children have no time to listen to lectures about their teeth, and they could be too young to reason on the importance. Hence if the parent is not vigilant in monitoring their children’s teeth, the consequence can be tooth decay.
  • Many parents will put their children to bed with a bottle of milk or juice in the mouth. These two are harmful to your child’s teeth, because they contain sugar in them, and sugar puts the developing child’s gums at risk of tooth decay.
  • Another set of parents will only take their children to a dentist when they complain of pain. Any other time it is a no-no. When tooth decay occurs, it may not be noticed immediately, especially in children. It may be only when see your child wincing in pain when eating sweets, or something warm or cold, that you sense something is wrong. Hence to avoid getting to that stage, it is recommended that they get are frequent check-ups, whether or not they complain of pain.
  • Many other parents will not care much about the brushing of their children’s teeth, which is very important seeing as they are still very young. The earlier the children are taught good oral hygiene habits, the better they are placed, and this includes brushing.  Brushing should be a family project that should be done together. This will give the children excitement and the urge to want to do it more frequently. As a result of that, they learn early how to take care of their teeth. This, however, should be done under a parent’s supervision for proper guidance.
  • Feed the children on proper nutrition that will strengthen their teeth: food with loads of minerals but not too much sugar. Otherwise they will forever remain susceptible to tooth decay.

Contact a dentist or dental hygienist at Water Brook Dental in Washington DC for a dental check-up and other dental needs. Water Brook Dental has two locations in Washington DC. The Columbia Heights location is very  conveniently located to Downtown DC, Northeast DC, Adams Morgan, Dupont Circle, Logan Circle, U-Street Corridor, Mount Pleasant and many other parts of Washington. The Eastern Ave NW location is conveniently located to Downtown Silver Spring, Takoma Park MD, Silver Spring MD, Colesville, and other parts of Maryland as well as Northern Virginia and other parts of Virginia.