Cavity

Tips to help your child’s teeth last for a long time…

Bad teeth are nor hereditary, it’s bad dental habits that are the main problem. Some tips to help your child’s teeth last for a long time are:
- Feed the proper diet
A diet that is mainly cereal based is too mushy to provide milk teeth and gums with the chewing and biting exercise that they need. Crispy veggies, fibrous fruit, chewing meat keep teeth and gums biting fit, because they increase the flow of saliva which keeps the mouth clean by washing away food particles.
- The baby should never be left asleep sucking a bottle of milk. Wipe gums and budding teeth with a gauze pad after each feed especially at night.
- Sugar coating should not be done as the baby is not born with a sweet tooth. She/He acquires one. Do not add sugar to food and drinks. Offer nuts, fruit, cheese as snacks. If given at bedtime, rinse the mouth or brush teeth.
- Try to reduce the risk of decay. Be stingy with sticky sweets and drinks which stay put on the teeth.
- Milk teeth serve several purposes like to eat, to talk, to look good, to secure places for permanent teeth, to allow the jaw and muscles to grow. Decay in baby tooth can affect the permanent tooth which is waiting to emerge. Infection can also be caused in the jaw.
- Begin six monthly tests by the time your toddler is three, which is when decay starts. The time to fill in a cavity is at the very beginning. This saves the tooth and hurts the child less.
- Clear lumps and puddles from your baby’s mouth after each meal into a wet cloth or gauze. When your child is around two years, it is the best time to get them a tooth brush. Let the child brush away till she has had her fun after which you can finish up.
- Flossing helps to get to some of those in between spots that a tooth brush can never reach do do not forget to floss. It may not go smoothly in the start but if flossing becomes a part of daily routine, they will accept in painlessly.

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What are different teeth problems faced in children?

Cavities result from food debris piling up, attracting bacteria, which form a sticky film called plaque on the teeth and gums. Plaque is specially harmful when it is teamed with sugar or remains on the tooth for more than 24 hours. Lactic acid is produced which eats into the tooth’s top layer of enamel, strip it of calcium and starts the process of decay. Untreated cavities can progress to the pulp or the heart of the tooth after which the bacteria enter the blood stream and invade all the parts of the body. A tooth ache worsens with hot and cold foods and aggravated at night. Medicine in correct dose and applying an ice bag can help. See the doctor as soon as possible.

Gingivitis is an inflammation of gums. It happens when plaque is not removed every 24 hours so that it builds up in the places where the tooth meets the gums to form a hard surface called tartar which attracts more plaque. The gums become swollen, tender, spongy, bright pink and bleed on brushing. Go to the dentist who will remove plaque, insist on correct brushing, prescribe a diet that limits on sugary foods and is rich in vitamins.
Chipped teeth can be painless when only the outermost enamel is affected. Dentist will file the tooth or build it up with composite resins.
Fractured teeth cause the ending to become exposed and create an excruciates ache that stops the person from talking, eating, drinking. Dentist can extract the tooth, root canal treatment and capping can be done.
Knocked out teeth can be replaced but needs prompt action.
Gum cyst is a small pearly white swelling on baby’s gum. It is painless and disappears by itself.
Gum abscess is a collection of pus usually around the root of the tooth which almost always accompany tooth decay. Go to a dentist and drain out the pus and be treated.
Discoloration can be a line across the teeth, opaque patches or putty brown blotches are due to illness or poor nutrition. White patches, severe brown discoloration or mottles come from excess fluoridation. Brownish yellow stains and pitted enamel can follow tetracycline. Excessive iron leaves black specks. The dentist can clean superficial stains. Some may require bleaching and bonding.
Distorted teeth are twisted, crooked or out of place. ideally teeth should sit in a horseshoe arrangement.